Redemption
by JellyBean30
Summary: Sequel to The Downward Spiral Follow HouseCameron through the beginning of a relationship. Rated M mostly for language & possible sexual situations
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is the sequel to The Downward Spiral. Basically it will follow House/Cameron and the rest of the characters while they begin their relationship. These first few chapters are a little different, as they are following the same event through the eyes of a different person. This story begins immediately following The Downward Spiral, while House is in rehab.

Thanks for reading.

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Chapter 1

Wilson

To most people, three weeks without House would seem like a dream vacation. For Wilson, they were nothing short of torture, both personally and professionally. Wilson was consulting on numerous cases for the diagnostics department while House was gone, in addition to helping cover House's clinic hours, at Cameron's insistence, and treating his own patients.

During all this, he was worried. He worried about whether House would make it through the program; he worried how House would manage three weeks with no video games, Ipod or even a cell phone. Mostly, he worried about what would happen when House came back. Would he be able to manage his recovery outside the treatment center? Would he be ashamed when he got back and close himself off even more? What would happen with him and Cameron? And what if it didn't work out?

"Dr. Wilson, we need your help," Chase's voice interrupted Wilson reverie.

"Sure," Wilson said. He dragged a hand across his tired face and struggled up from the couch in his office. He'd taken to napping in his office at odd hours of the day, trying to catch up on the sleep he was missing at night.

"Got a new case you need a consult on?" Wilson asked Chase, stretching slightly before following him into the hall.

"New case, but we don't exactly need a consult," Chase answered.

"What's the problem then?" Wilson asked. As Chase and Wilson rounded the corner from Wilson's office to the conference room, Wilson could hear voices almost shouting at each other.

"That's the problem," Chase answered. Wilson and Chase paused in the doorway to watch as Cuddy, Cameron and Foreman all tried to talk together. The cacophony was enough to make Wilson wish he'd locked the door before he lay on the couch.

"What happened?" Wilson asked Chase. There was no sense in trying to get into the middle of this without knowing what was going on.

"Cameron told Foreman to run some additional tests on our new patient, and he blew her off. Cameron went to check on him, the patient I mean, and saw the tests weren't done. When she asked the nurse about it, the nurse told her Foreman hadn't ordered any tests. I guess Cameron didn't cover very well that she was mad, because the nurse went and told Cuddy. Now Foreman is pissed because he thinks Cameron ratted on him, and Cameron is pissed because Cuddy gave the nurses instructions to let her know if anything weird was going on down here. And I don't really know why Cuddy is pissed. I sort of gave up when she started yelling," Chase finished.

"Well, week two is off to a rousing start," Wilson said.

"I never thought I'd say this, but I may be glad when House gets back," Chase admitted.

"Your secret is safe with me," Wilson said quietly to Chase.

"Hey?" Wilson shouted. Getting no response, he raised his voice even louder. "HEY!"

Cuddy, Cameron and Foreman all turned to look at him in surprise. None of the three had even noticed him come in the room. Wilson took in their expressions quickly. If there was one thing he was good at, it was his ability to read people. Cameron looked hurt, probably because she felt Cuddy didn't trust her to lead the team. Cuddy looked irritated, likely with Foreman for not following Cameron's instructions and with Cameron for taking it. Foreman just looked pissed, and Wilson guessed it was because he thought he should have left in charge and not Cameron. Wilson suspected Foreman was upset because he thought Cameron was getting preferential treatment.

"Not to sound like House," Wilson began, "But if the patient dies while you're in here arguing your faces will be so red." This statement garnered an eye roll from Foreman and Cuddy, and a disgusted glance from Cameron. "If I'm not mistaken, Dr. Cameron is in charge here. That means she gets to go first." Wilson waved his arm at Cameron to indicate she had the floor.

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Cuddy

To most people, three weeks without House would seem like a dream vacation. For Cuddy, it was turning her professional life into a nightmare. Despite the fact that House was an unbelievable pain in the a, he was a brilliant doctor. True he had virtually no work ethic and had no compunctions about breaking rules and regulations, or the law for that matter, but he always did so for the good of his patient. With House gone, Cuddy feared the diagnostic department would kill someone. House's fellows were good doctors, but they weren't House.

Cuddy had ordered the nurses to keep an eye on any patients that were assigned to Dr. House's service while he was away. She wanted to be kept apprised of all tests and procedures before they were performed whenever possible. She also wanted to hear all the goings on in and out of the patient's room. Basically, she was spying. She always feared a lawsuit when House treated a patient, but generally she feared a lawsuit from an angry patient. Currently, she feared a lawsuit from the distraught family of a dead patient.

"Excuse me, Dr. Cuddy?" a voice interrupted Cuddy's musings.

"Yes?" Cuddy replied to the nurse who had just entered her office.

"I think we may have a problem upstairs," Nurse Molly stated.

"What happened?" Cuddy asked, anxious. She stood up from her desk and walked to the coat hanger by the door. Donning her lab coat, she walked out of her office through the clinic and to the elevators, Nurse Molly in tow.

"Apparently Dr. Cameron told Dr. Foreman to run some new tests on Mr. Stephens, their new patient. Dr. Foreman didn't run them. Dr. Cameron just came in to check on Mr. Stephens and saw the test hadn't been ordered. She asked me about it, and I told her that Dr. Foreman had been in, but he hadn't ordered any tests," Nurse Molly relayed this information to Cuddy as they stepped into the elevator and began their ascent. The elevator doors opened and Cuddy stepped out quickly, followed by Nurse Molly. "She didn't say anything, but she looked like she could bite the head off a rat. Actually, she sort of looked like Dr. House for a second."

Cuddy grinned quickly, then shook her head. She knew it was only a matter of time before something like this happened. She thanked Nurse Molly as they neared the conference room, and the younger woman disappeared quickly, not wanting anything to do with whatever was about to happen.

Cuddy entered the conference room to hear Cameron and Foreman already arguing. They weren't shouting yet, but were closed. Chase sat in the chair in the corner of the room, watching but wisely staying out of it.

"Dr. Cuddy, what a surprise," Foreman seethed upon seeing her. "How long did you wait before you ran downstairs to rat me out to your boyfriend's boss, Cameron?"

"Dr. Cameron did not come to see me," Cuddy responded before Cameron had the chance. "Although she certainly would have had every right to. Dr. Foreman, I'm surprised at you. Dr. Cameron is in charge while Dr. House is out of town, and I expect you to treat any instructions from her exactly as you would treat instructions from him."

"How do you know that?" Cameron asked Cuddy. "Are you spying on us?" Cuddy didn't reply, and Cameron took her silence as an admission of guilt. "You don't trust me to run things either!" Cameron exploded.

Cuddy began speaking again, trying to assure Cameron that it wasn't that she didn't trust her but more like she was concerned about how the department would run while House was away. Cameron wasn't listening however, as she'd also begun speaking about how she couldn't believe that another woman would do that to her. Foreman was trying to make himself heard over both women with his opinion that he shouldn't have to take orders from Cameron just because House liked her better. None of the three of them noticed Chase leave the room and return with Dr. Wilson.

"HEY!" Wilson's voice pierced through the din. "Not to sound like House but if the patient dies while you're in here arguing your faces will be so red." Cuddy merely rolled her eyes at him. "If I'm not mistaken, Dr. Cameron is in charge here. That means she gets to go first." Wilson waved his arm at Cameron to indicate she had the floor.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Foreman

To most people, three weeks away from House would sound like a dream vacation. But so far for Foreman, it was a disaster. House had left Cameron in charge of the department. Foreman was angry that House hadn't chosen him. He'd already been in charge once before, and things had gone okay. He was mostly angry because he assumed House left Cameron in charge because they were dating. This was one of the many reasons he had tried to convince House that dating Cameron was not a good idea. No matter how hard you tried, two people in a relationship could rarely keep the relationship out of their work.

The first few days had gone relatively well. Cameron wasn't exactly a difficult boss to get along with, especially after House. It just grated on his nerves that he had to take orders from her. They'd had two very simple cases the first week. Well, maybe not simple by an ordinary standard, but simpler than the cases House usually accepted. They'd had one case of Celiac disease. It wasn't always easy to diagnose, but having seen a case of it previously the team was quicker to recognize it than the patient's primary care doctor had been. The second case they'd had was a West Nile case. Again, it was not exactly simple but routine enough for them.

When their new patient had been assigned yesterday, the team had hit a bit of a stumbling block. All their initial tests had come back negative, and the fellows were struggling to come up with some alternate diagnosis that made any kind of sense. Finally, Cameron had told him to go and rerun three of the previous tests. She told Chase to go back to the patient and go over the history again to try to find something missing and she was going to start researching other possible causes.

Foreman grumbled to himself as he left the conference room. Repeating these tests was a waste of time; they already had the results and they were negative. Foreman entered the patient's room to check on him. His vitals were stable, and the patient was finally sleeping. Foreman decided not to run the tests again; instead he went to the lounge to research other possibilities himself.

He'd been in the lounge for an hour or so when he was paged to the conference room. Hoping that the patient had developed a new symptom to help point them in the right direction, Foreman went directly there, never considering that Cameron would be angry.

"I asked you to repeat those tests over an hour ago Foreman, what happened?" Cameron asked him. Chase entered the room behind Foreman, having just returned from seeing the patient. He scoped out the tension and quietly took a seat in the corner of the room.

"Repeating those tests was a waste of time," Foreman replied. "We should be looking for a new idea, not recycling old ones."

"Which is what I was doing," Cameron responded. "Just because you disagree with me is no reason to avoid caring for our patient."

"If you want to care for our patient, then you can repeat useless tests. I want to cure him and the only way to do that is by looking for new information," Foreman countered.

"Why are you being so hostile? I'm just trying to do my job. Being in charge is hard enough without someone else intentionally trying to screw with me. Or don't you remember when you were supposed to be in charge of House?" Cameron retorted.

"At least I didn't get chosen to be in charge by sleeping with the boss," Foreman spat at her. He'd really had about enough of her passive aggressive crap this past week. Just as Cameron was about to really start in on him, Cuddy walked into the conference room from the hall.

"Dr. Cuddy, what a surprise," Foreman seethed upon seeing her. "How long did you wait before you ran downstairs to rat me out to your boyfriend's boss, Cameron?" Foreman turned on Cameron again, eyes blazing with righteous anger.

"Dr. Cameron did not come to see me," Cuddy answered his accusation. "Although she certainly would have had every right to. Dr. Foreman, I'm surprised at you. Dr. Cameron is in charge while Dr. House is out of town, and I expect you to treat any instructions from her exactly as you would treat instructions from him."

"How do you know that?" Cameron asked Cuddy. "Are you spying on us?" Cuddy didn't reply, and Foreman was insulted. Did she think just because Cameron was in charge that they'd all become stupid?

"You don't trust me to run things either!" Cameron exploded.

Foreman began explaining that just because House liked her better was no reason for him to have to take orders from her. He was only half catching what Cameron was saying, but it was something along the lines of being surprised that Cuddy would spy on her and how women in man's world should stick together. Cuddy was babbling some baloney about protecting her hospital while House was away. None of the three noticed Chase leave the room and return with Dr. Wilson.

"HEY!" Wilson's voice pierced through the din. "Not to sound like House but if the patient dies while you're in here arguing your faces will be so red." Cuddy merely rolled her eyes at him. "If I'm not mistaken, Dr. Cameron is in charge here. That means she gets to go first." Wilson waved his arm at Cameron to indicate she had the floor.

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Chase

To most people, three weeks away from House would seem like a dream vacation. To Chase, that was what it had seemed like at first. But today, well today was another story all together. Today was kind of like day six of a ten day trip when you realize you've seen everything there is to see and all that's left is to spend the rest of your vacation trying not to piss off the people you were with.

Normally it was Cameron trying to make peace with everyone and keep tempers down, but not this time. She was the one in charge, and to Chase it seemed like maybe House had been wrong for once. Not that he didn't think Cameron was good doctor, he did. And he certainly didn't mind taking orders from her. Actually, Chase didn't really mind taking orders from anyone. He just didn't think Cameron had quite the backbone to stand up to Foreman. She managed with House, but Chase suspected that was for a very different reason. He'd always suspected that House had a thing for Cameron, and he knew how much House hated emotional scenes. He probably backed down from Cameron when things got too tense or too personal for his tastes. Of course, now that they were dating that would be another story.

Chase couldn't quite get his head around that. He knew Cameron had liked House, who didn't she'd practically announced it to the entire hospital when she forced him out on that dinner date. But when she'd called him last year the night she got high, he thought maybe she was over him. Now he knew she was just lonely. He'd suspected House had a thing for Cameron, but really what man wouldn't? She was gorgeous, and just different enough to keep House guessing.

Anyway, when their new patient's tests had all come back negative, things started going down hill. Foreman and Cameron were already at odds about how to handle things. Cameron wanted to repeat a few of the tests, which Foreman thought was a waste of time. Chase didn't bother to point out that while Foreman was probably right, he also had no new suggestions to offer. Why step in the middle? He'd readily agreed to go back and speak to their patient again to try and ferret out some little detail they'd missed the first time around.

After spending about an hour in the patient's room, Chase had nothing new. The man's life was a bore. He was a tax attorney and hadn't left New Jersey in five years. He was unmarried and had no family nearby. He had few friends and not much of a social life. Chase asked him everything he could think of that might explain even one of his symptoms, but came up empty. Dejected, he started back to the conference room to report to Cameron. Arriving, he heard what sounded like an argument. Great, he thought.

"Repeating those tests was a waste of time," Foreman was saying to Cameron. "We should be looking for a new idea, not recycling old ones." Chase decided to wait out the storm before telling them he was going to be of no help, and seated himself in the corner.

"Which is what I was doing," Cameron responded. "Just because you disagree with me is no reason to avoid caring for our patient."

"If you want to care for our patient, then you can repeat useless tests. I want to cure him and the only to do that is by looking for new information," Foreman countered.

"Why are you being so hostile? I'm just trying to do my job. Being in charge is hard enough without someone else intentionally trying to screw with me. Or don't you remember when you were supposed to be in charge of House?" Cameron retorted. Chase cringed at that last one. Probably not best to poke the bear, he thought to himself.

"At least I didn't get chosen to be in charge by sleeping with the boss," Foreman spat at her. Chase watched as anger flashed in Cameron's eyes. As Chase prepared himself for the screaming that was to follow, Dr. Cuddy walked in from the hall.

"Dr. Cuddy, what a surprise," Foreman seethed upon seeing her. "How long did you wait before you ran downstairs to rat me out to your boyfriend's boss, Cameron?" Chase inhaled sharply, waiting for someone to call him the rat, even though he'd had nothing to do with it.

"Dr. Cameron did not come to see me," Cuddy answered his accusation. "Although she certainly would have had every right to. Dr. Foreman, I'm surprised at you. Dr. Cameron is in charge while Dr. House is out of town, and I expect you to treat any instructions from her exactly as you would treat instructions from him."

"How do you know that?" Cameron asked Cuddy. "Are you spying on us?" Chase wasn't surprised. After all, she'd known the whole time he was the one feeding info to Vogler, but had done nothing about it. She would stop at almost nothing to protect her hospital.

"You don't trust me to run things either!" Cameron exploded.

Chase decided this was going to get ugly, and he was not the one to make it go away. He got up quietly and walked around the corner to Dr. Wilson's office.

"Dr. Wilson, we need your help," Chase said to the oncologist, who appeared to be trying to catch a nap on the couch.

"Sure," Wilson said. He dragged a hand across his tired face and struggled up from the couch in his office.

"Got a new case you need a consult on?" Wilson asked Chase, stretching slightly before following him into the hall.

"New case, but we don't exactly need a consult," Chase answered.

"What's the problem then?" Wilson asked. As Chase and Wilson rounded the corner from Wilson's office to the conference room, the voices drifted in to the hall, all three of the occupants of the conference room now on the verge of actual screaming.

"That's the problem," Chase answered. Wilson and Chase paused in the doorway to watch as Cuddy, Cameron and Foreman all tried to talk together. The noise was even worse than when Chase had left.

"What happened?" Wilson asked Chase.

"Cameron told Foreman to run some additional tests on our new patient, and he blew her off. Cameron went to check on him, the patient I mean, and saw the tests weren't done. When she asked the nurse about it, the nurse told her Foreman hadn't ordered any tests. I guess Cameron didn't cover very well that she was mad, because the nurse went and told Cuddy. Now Foreman is pissed because he thinks Cameron ratted on him, and Cameron is pissed because Cuddy gave the nurses instructions to let her know if anything weird was going on down here. And I don't really know why Cuddy is pissed. I sort of gave up when she started yelling," Chase finished.

"Well, week two is off to a rousing start," Wilson said.

"I never thought I'd say this, but I may be glad when House gets back," Chase blurted out, the look on his face giving away his regret at letting the thought out of his mind.

"Your secret is safe with me," Wilson said quietly to Chase.

"Hey!" Wilson said. Getting no response he increased the volume of his voice. "HEY! Not to sound like House but if the patient dies while you're in here arguing your faces will be so red." Chase chuckled. Thank goodness for Wilson. "If I'm not mistaken, Dr. Cameron is in charge here. That means she gets to go first." Wilson waved his arm at Cameron to indicate she had the floor.

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Cameron

To most people, three weeks away from House would seem like a dream vacation. But Cameron had expected it to be nothing short of nightmare. Not only was she worried about him to the point where she could barely sleep, but he'd left her in charge of the department while he was gone.

The first few days, before they'd gotten a case, she'd wondered if he hadn't done it to try and prove to her that he trusted her. After they'd gotten through the two cases they'd had so far, she wondered if he hadn't done it to give her the chance to prove to herself that she could do it. But, now that they were stumped on their newest case, she was wondering if he hadn't done it just to torture her a little. Maybe this was just House's way of giving her a parting shot without having to actually talk to her about anything.

Cameron shook her head; she was just tired. She'd barely managed four hours of sleep the past few days. She took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes for a moment before turning back to the impossibly long list of possible illnesses she'd compiled on their new patient. She crossed another possibility off the list and slumped back in her chair in disgust. If House were here, he would call her pathetic and insult her ability to come up with a good idea and run with it. He would be right, and she would hate him for it.

Cameron decided a break was in order, as she was getting nowhere with her research but deeper in the hole. She went to go check on their patient. The short walk to patient's room did nothing to help clear her head, and upon seeing that the tests she'd wanted Foreman to repeat hadn't been ordered, she seethed. Nurse Molly confirmed that Foreman had been in to see Mr. Stephens, but hadn't ordered any new tests. And Chase wasn't here either, had he even gone over the patient history. Cameron marched back to the conference room and paged the boys.

"I asked you to repeat those tests over an hour ago Foreman, what happened?" Cameron pounced on Foreman as soon as he walked in the door. Chase walked in behind Foreman, but Cameron ignored him for the moment. He sat in the corner, and Cameron was pleased, although ashamed of herself, to see that he looked a little frightened.

"Repeating those tests was a waste of time," Foreman replied. "We should be looking for a new idea, not recycling old ones."

"Which is what I was doing," Cameron responded. "Just because you disagree with me is no reason to avoid caring for our patient." He would never have done that if House were here, Cameron thought to herself.

"If you want to care for our patient, then you can repeat useless tests. I want to cure him and the only way to do that is by looking for new information," Foreman countered.

"Why are you being so hostile? I'm just trying to do my job. Being in charge is hard enough without someone else intentionally trying to screw with me. Or don't you remember when you were supposed to be in charge of House?" Cameron retorted. That had been a real success, she remembered.

"At least I didn't get chosen to be in charge by sleeping with the boss," Foreman spat at her. Cameron inhaled sharply. How could he think that! If anyone should know that being in charge was a thankless job, it should be Foreman, he'd done it before. Cameron opened her mouth to tell him what a self-righteous pig he was, when Dr. Cuddy entered from the hall.

"Dr. Cuddy, what a surprise," Foreman said sarcastically. "How long did you wait before you ran downstairs to rat me out to your boyfriend's boss, Cameron?" Cameron was insulted. Did he really think she was so weak that she couldn't handle him herself?

"Dr. Cameron did not come to see me," Cuddy answered his accusation. "Although she certainly would have had every right to. Dr. Foreman, I'm surprised at you. Dr. Cameron is in charge while Dr. House is out of town, and I expect you to treat any instructions from her exactly as you would treat instructions from him."

"How do you know that?" Cameron asked Cuddy. "Are you spying on us?" Cameron accused. How could she? Did anyone here respect her at all? "You don't trust me to run things either!" Cameron exploded.

None of them noticed Chase leave the room and come back with Dr. Wilson. Cameron began berating Cuddy for treating her like a little girl, instead of giving her the respect that she would expect from someone else. Cuddy tried to explain that she was only trying to protect the team and the hospital; while Foreman launched into a vicious spew about how this was what happened when you dated your boss.

"HEY!" Wilson's voice pierced through the din. "Not to sound like House but if the patient dies while you're in here arguing your faces will be so red." Cameron gave him a slightly disgusted look. "If I'm not mistaken, Dr. Cameron is in charge here. That means she gets to go first." Wilson waved his arm at Cameron to indicate she had the floor.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Thanks to all who reviewed these first couple of chapters. I did enjoy doing the same scene from each character's point of view. The rest of the story will continue on in the typical fashion.

Enjoy!

Chapter 3

Cameron glanced at Wilson, unsure whether to be grateful for his help or resentful of his butting in. She decided to be grateful; resentful took too much energy. She tried to gather her thoughts, but couldn't with everyone looking at her. What she really needed was for everybody to leave her alone so she could think. Is this why House was always ordering them off to do tests when even he didn't think they would give him the answer?

"Foreman, I appreciate your perspective, and I agree we need to keep looking for a new theory. In the meantime, go and have those tests repeated," Cameron said. She kept her voice intentionally calm and level. She was not going to get into another argument with him. Foreman looked at her, and then at Cuddy. He finally bowed to her wishes, both literally and figuratively, and went to repeat the tests.

"Chase, anything?" Cameron asked. Chase just shook his head no. "Okay then, I want you to go check out his house and his office. Don't break in, just ask him for the keys." Chase nodded his agreement and left without speaking.

"Dr. Cuddy, I appreciate that you're trying to keep an eye on us. But I'm never going to be able to get Foreman and Chase to put any faith in me if they think you don't have any. Give me a chance to do this my own way, and I promise if I get into trouble I will ask for your help," Cameron hoped that didn't sound too impertinent. She didn't want Dr. Cuddy to be angry with her, but putting her in charge was useless if she was going to stand over her shoulder the entire time.

Cuddy looked at the younger doctor with a little more respect. Maybe House hadn't been crazy to leave her in charge. And she really shouldn't have doubted the Cameron would ever put her own pride or interests above the welfare of a patient.

"Dr. Cameron, I will leave it in your hands. I would like an update on your patient before you leave for the day," Cuddy said. She looked at Wilson. "Dr. Wilson, would you join me downstairs when you're free?"

"Sure, Cuddy, I'll be there in a few minutes," Wilson said. He watched Cuddy walk down the hall and then turned to Cameron, who had flopped down into a chair and buried her head in her arms. "So, honey, how was your day?" he asked lightly. Cameron just groaned.

"Is he trying to tell me something, or trying to teach me something?" Cameron asked Wilson.

"Why can't it be both?" Wilson replied.

"If he's trying to tell me he trusts me, I would have preferred a deep, dark secret. And if he's trying to teach me something, I'm not sure I get it," Cameron complained.

"You will," Wilson soothed. "He didn't leave you in charge to fail, Allison. He left you in charge so you could prove to yourself that you could do it."

"I'm not so sure, anymore. It's only been a week and I've already got a team who doesn't follow instructions, a boss breathing down my neck and a dying patient," Cameron said. She stared at the whiteboard, which was once again filled with seemingly unrelated symptoms. "I swear sometimes that thing speaks to him," she gestured toward the board.

"You could be right. It would certainly explain a lot," Wilson replied. "I wish I could help you here, but I can't. You've got to figure this one out on your own." Wilson patted her on the back before leaving to go meet Cuddy.

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Wilson entered Cuddy's office and sat down, waiting patiently while she finished up a piece of paperwork. She scribbled for a minute or two, then closed the file she was working on and dropped it in her outbox.

"You wanted me?" Wilson asked.

"Yes, I did," Cuddy replied. She stood up from her desk and walked around to sit in Wilson's lap. "I'm worried about them, James."

"I know," Wilson responded, wrapping an arm around her waist. He looked up into her eyes and smiled. "They'll be okay. House trusts them, so should we."

Cuddy leaned down and kissed him softly. Wilson reached his free hand into her hair and pulled her closer, deepening their kiss. The couple forgot themselves for a moment, lost in each other before Cuddy broke the kiss and looked quickly toward the door of her office.

"How long are we going to keep this a secret?" Wilson asked her. He knew she was afraid of what people would think, but Wilson didn't really care. As much as he'd loved his wives, and some of his mistresses, he'd never felt this kind of connection with any woman before. The closest thing he'd ever felt to this was with House. He felt like she understood him.

"I want to wait until House comes back, and everything is back to normal," Cuddy replied. She laughed at the look he gave her. "Okay, what passes for normal around here." She couldn't really explain to James, but she needed to let House know first. She sort of wanted, what, his blessing, his approval? No, she wanted to know if House thought she was nuts and setting herself up to get hurt. Nobody knew Wilson like House, and she needed some reassurance.

Wilson sighed. This was the one area in their relationship that they couldn't seem to work out. Wilson wanted to shout from the rooftops about her, and she wanted to keep it a secret, from everyone except House. Wilson had suspected that maybe Cuddy would really rather be with House, but he'd quickly pushed that thought out of his mind. He told himself that she was just unsure of him, and he couldn't really blame her. He didn't exactly have the best track record with women and maybe she was just looking for a little reassurance. Of course, looking for reassurance about anything from House was a little bit insane, but that was part of what Wilson liked best about her.

Wilson leaned upward and kissed the tip of her nose. She smiled at him and kissed his forehead in return. She stood up, and walked back to her own chair.

"Dinner tonight?" Wilson asked, standing.

"My place?" Cuddy asked.

"See you at 6," Wilson answered, and walked out the door.

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Cameron found Foreman in the lab. She wasn't looking forward to another confrontation with him, but if they were going to manage the next few weeks without House they were going to have to work this out somehow. She didn't want to go to Cuddy for help and she really didn't want to have to order Foreman to do things, but right now she wasn't seeing any other way.

"Foreman, we need to talk about this," Cameron began.

"I'm not discussing my feelings with you, Dr. Cameron. I'm not House," Foreman replied, turning his back on the tests and facing her.

"Well, that's pretty evident from the way you've been acting," Cameron retorted. She had hoped he'd remain facing away from her, but she should have known better. Foreman was never one to back down from a confrontation.

"And how is that?" Foreman asked.

"Jealous," Cameron replied. "You're jealous because House picked me over you."

"That's ridiculous," Foreman scoffed, but without conviction.

"Did it ever occur to you that there might have been another motive behind House choosing me?" Cameron asked.

"Like what?" Foreman asked snappishly.

"Maybe he thought I needed to learn how to do this. And maybe, he figured you didn't."

"How to do what?"

"How to be in charge; how to be the one that everything is riding on. Eric, you've never backed down from a fight or a confrontation with him since you started here. It's taken me two years to really stand up to him, and I still can't manage it all the time. You don't need to learn how to do that, but I do," Cameron said. She paused, and considered what she'd just said. How about that? I figured it out, Cameron said. "Admitting to you that I need to learn how to do this is the best way I know to get you to give me the chance to figure it out. But in the meantime, I'd appreciate it if you'd quit screwing with me. I don't want to run to Cuddy for help, but if your attitude about my being in charge is going to compromise the patient's care, don't think for a moment that I won't." She finished, and looked at him directly. She wanted to be certain that he understood she meant what she said. She was not going to let any patient suffer due to their inability to work professionally.

"I hadn't considered that," Foreman acknowledged. "I'm sorry, Cameron. You're right. We came here to learn from House, and this is part of it, I guess. I can respect that."

"Thanks," Cameron replied, as Foreman's test results began printing. She waited for him to review them, already suspecting what they'd say.

"All still negative, boss," Foreman reported, handing her the results. Cameron glanced at them quickly. He was right, of course, but something nagged at her. Reading more closely, she noticed that some of the patient's blood work was a little off.

"Negative, but definitely not normal," Cameron replied, giving the results back to Foreman.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Chase had been all through Mr. Stephens house and office, and found nothing terribly interesting until he reached the bathroom trash can. He found two empty bottles of Ibuprophen. The rest of the house was very clean, which made Chase suspect that these bottles had been finished recently. Mr. Stephens wasn't the type of guy to let the trash pile up in the house.

When Chase got back to the hospital, Cameron and Foreman were just exiting the lab. Foreman was holding some test results, and he and Cameron seemed to be getting along better.

"Anything?" Cameron asked, noticing Chase down the hall.

"Yeah, two empty bottles of Ibuprophen in the bathroom trash," Chase answered. "He wouldn't let the trash pile up, so he must have used both of these bottles recently."

The three ducklings entered the conference room, and began looking over the patient's charts again.

"He did say he'd been having headaches lately, but he's been working on a big tax audit and spending a lot of hours at work, he figured it was just stress and spending so much time working at his computer. What if it wasn't? Maybe the headaches are a symptom?" Foreman asked. "Putting that into the mix could point to a neurological disorder."

"How about fever?" Chase asked.

"He doesn't have a fever," Cameron replied.

"Of course not, he's been taking Ibuprophen non-stop for at least three weeks. What if he has a fever, but he's been suppressing it without knowing?" Chase suggested.

"Foreman, let me see those test results again," Cameron said. She looked them over. "His white count is elevated. It's an infection. You're right Chase, he's been treating his fever unintentionally. Let's get an LP and hope its bacterial." Cameron smiled at the boys, hoping this was the answer.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Several hours later, Cameron knocked on Cuddy's door. Cuddy called for her to come in, but Cameron opened the door and leaned against the frame.

"Mr. Stephens is fine, he has Listeriosis. One of his client's gave him some homegrown vegetables. They were using untreated manure as fertilizer and it infected the soil. We've started him on IV antibiotics, and he'll be fine," Cameron reported.

"And, how are things going with the boys?" Cuddy asked.

"Okay, actually. Foreman and I came to an understanding that House obviously feels I need to learn about how to take charge and he's going to let me give it a try. And Chase is fine. He doesn't seem to care one or the other, to tell you the truth," Cameron answered.

"And how are you doing?" Cuddy asked gently. She knew from James that House and Cameron had something going on, although he wasn't sure exactly what. Cuddy was happy for them, and she hoped it worked out. Just because things hadn't worked out between her and House didn't mean she wanted him to be miserable forever.

"I'm fine," Cameron replied quickly. Too quickly, Cuddy thought.

"You look awful, Cameron, not to put too fine a point on it," Cuddy chided. "Are you sleeping at all?"

"Three or four hours a night," Cameron admitted. "I'll be fine, really. It's almost Friday, I'll have the whole weekend to catch up."

"Cameron, he'll be okay," Cuddy said.

"Yeah," Cameron replied quietly, and left Cuddy to her paperwork.


	4. Chapter 4

The chapters will probably be a little shorter than usual, but hopefully that will mean more frequent updates. Please review, it makes me smile!

Chapter 4

House stepped out of the airport terminal and pushed his way through the throng of people toward the baggage claim area. After retrieving his lone duffel bag, he turned and began scanning the crowd to find Wilson. After searching for a few minutes, he spotted Wilson against a wall, holding up a sign that said 'Manipulative Bastard'. House grinned.

"Missed me lots, huh?" House snarked.

"Oh yeah. I could barely eat and I cried myself to sleep every night staring at your picture," Wilson returned in a slightly girlish voice, tossing the sign in a trashcan. God he'd missed this.

"I knew it. Well, as long as you didn't kiss it and then slide it under your pillow, we're okay," House replied. God he'd missed Wilson.

"You look good," Wilson commented. He took House's duffel bag from him and started walking to a nearby exit. "My car is right outside. You must be anxious to get home and get the airplane smell off you." Wilson knew how much House hated to fly, not just because it was uncomfortable but because of all the people it forced him to be around.

"I just want to go home and sit in silence for a whole day. If I'd realized how much those rehab people talked, I might have reconsidered," House joked. He pulled his sunglasses out of his jacket and donned them as he and Wilson stepped outside. "How's Steve McQueen?"

"He's fine. I've been feeding him and taking care of his cage for you. Can I just say, next time get a fish, okay?" Wilson pleaded. Wilson did not like rats.

"Fish aren't cuddly," House replied simply. He began to say something else, but stopped when he noticed a woman sitting in Wilson's car. Was it Cameron? House squinted, even with the sunglasses it was too bright to tell for sure. He glanced at Wilson, would he really have brought Cameron here? House wasn't sure he was ready to see her yet. Wilson seemed oblivious to House's concerns. Only when House stopped walking and Wilson realized he was alone did he notice there was a problem.

"What's wrong?" Wilson asked. Then he looked in the direction House was currently staring. "I'm sorry, I know you probably wanted me to come alone but she was sleeping, and I tried to slip out quietly but she woke up and then she wanted to come with me and …" Wilson let his voice trail off at the expression on House's face. "House?"

"You're rambling. That's never good," House said slowly. "It means you're afraid to tell me something."

"Look, House she's been really nervous about this. I don't know why she cares what you think, but she does. She won't even tell anybody about us because she wanted to hear what you thought first. Honestly, you might think she liked you instead," Wilson said. House just stared. "I know it's not in your nature, but try to be nice, okay. Don't scare her off about me?"

House looked at Wilson incredulously. He was about to say something extremely nasty, even by House's standards, when the car window rolled down and the woman stuck her head out.

"Hey, why don't you boys just smooch and get it over with? I haven't had any breakfast and I'm starving," she yelled.

"Cuddy?" House gasped. Wilson nodded and gave House a pleading look. "Huh," House said.

"What?" Wilson asked, afraid.

"I'd just always assumed Cuddy would bite her partner's head off after mating," House quipped. "I call shotgun!" House yelled at her and she smirked. She got out of the front seat and looked him up and down.

"Glad you're back," she said softly, and kissed him on the cheek. House looked away embarrassed, and then jerked his head toward Wilson, now putting House's bag in the trunk. "So?" Cuddy asked him.

"You'll have a job keeping him in line," House warned.

"I know. But it'll be fun trying," Cuddy replied with a grin that couldn't quite conceal the question in her eyes.

"Eeeww. Can gouging your eyes out erase a mental image?" House asked. "He's a good man, Lisa. Just a little weak. You'll have to be the strong one. Shouldn't be a problem for you, we all know you used to be a man," House quipped at her. He leaned forward and kissed her cheek, then whispered "Good luck," in her ear. She smiled, and climbed into the back seat. House sat in front of her and looked over at Wilson in the driver's seat.

"So, who's buying me breakfast?" House grinned at his best friend, who rolled his eyes as he started the car. It was good to be home.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

After breakfast, Wilson dropped Cuddy off at home and he and House stopped to pick up Steve. Wilson drove House home with Steve in the backseat. Wilson was going to drop them off, but House invited Wilson to come in when they arrived. Wilson agreed, something about the look on House's face told him he wanted something besides company.

House carried Steve inside and Wilson carried House's bag. House put Steve on the coffee table and then flopped on the couch. Wilson put House's bag on the floor and then sat down on the couch's opposite end.

"So, tell me all the gossip. I hate being out of the loop," House demanded. Wilson grinned. A month without gossip and a cell phone must have been torture. Wilson proceeded to fill House in on all the gossip, including the current theories about why Cuddy seemed so much less irritable lately.

"There's a betting pool going. Most of the pediatrics department seems to think she's pregnant and the guys in OB think they're nuts. They've got their money on you being gone, and that she'll start being miserable again once you're back. My department is betting she's got a boyfriend, a belief that might have been planted by a certain department head I know," Wilson's voice betrayed him. Right now, Wilson expected to win about $1500 from pediatrics and OB, through his nurses, of course.

"Wilson, placing bets when you have insider information?" House pretended to be shocked.

"Do you think I've learned nothing in all the years we've been friends?" Wilson arched an eyebrow at House, and House actually smiled back.

"All good stuff, Wilson, really, but you haven't even mentioned the kids," House scolded.

"Oh, well." The grin faded from Wilson's face. House straightened up a bit. One of the hardest parts of deciding to go to rehab had been giving up control of the department and leaving it in the hands of his fellows. Was he going to have to regret that decision?

"They couldn't have killed anybody, Cuddy would have ripped me a new one," House mused. "So it's got to be something more personal. Were the kids fighting while Dad was away?"

"Well, Foreman and Cameron had a little tiff, but they made up," Wilson reported.

"And? I know that's not it," House pressed. "Who cracked? Was it Chase?"

"It's Cameron," Wilson said quietly.

"What's wrong with Cameron?" House asked slowly, not wanting his voice to show too much concern.

"She's not herself. I've tried talking to her, but lately it's worse than talking to you. One word answers, dodging the question, changing the subject. I swear, it's like she's channeling you or something," Wilson rambled.

"Very informative, Dr. Wilson. She's not herself. Unless she got a brain transplant, I'm going to need a little more information," House demanded.

"They lost a patient two weeks ago. They diagnosed her correctly, but she'd waited so long to see a doctor there was nothing they could do for her," Wilson began but House interrupted.

"Cameron's lost patients before, and if she waited to see a doctor then it wasn't Cameron's fault," House interjected.

"Do you want to tell the story?" Wilson asked. House looked properly chastised and motioned for Wilson to continue. "She was pregnant."

"Cameron was pregnant?" House blurted, shocked.

"Not Cameron, the patient. The patient was pregnant. They couldn't save the baby either," Wilson paused. House nodded. Cameron always seemed to take the death of an infant especially hard. He supposed an un-born child would get a similar response.

"She's been very withdrawn ever since," Wilson continued. "She doesn't talk to anyone, and I mean that literally. If it's not directly related to the differential, she doesn't speak. She hasn't cried, or shown any emotion at all and you know that is just not Cameron. She looks exhausted and thinner than ever, if that's possible," Wilson stopped again. House searched his face.

"There's something else," House said.

"I can't be sure, but I think she's been hung over every day this week. I've never smelled any alcohol on her, and she's been nothing but professional with the patients, but… I've even had a couple of my nurses follow her into the ladies room, under the guise of making sure she's not sick, and they haven't noticed anything unusual about her," Wilson paused. "And I caught her smoking Friday before I left."

"Smoking, cigarettes?" House asked.

"Yeah, but since when does Cameron smoke? She told me she used to smoke a long time ago, when she was in high school," Wilson gave House a significant look. "I don't want to jump to any conclusions, but I'm a little worried that's not the only high school habit she's started again."

"And you weren't going to say anything to me about this?" House asked.

"I was kind of hoping maybe she'd talk to you about it?" Wilson stood up and looked down at House. "I've got to get home, I need to review some charts before my appointments tomorrow. You need a ride?"

"Nope, taking the bike," House responded. As Wilson opened the door, House called, "Wilson! Thanks." Wilson nodded and left.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

House paused just down the hall from his office, trying to get a peek into the conference room without being seen. He could see Foreman clearly, head bent over a medical journal. He could also see Chase's reflection in the glass, tipped back in his chair, frowning over a crossword puzzle. What House couldn't see was Cameron. A passing nurse gave him an odd look, and House snarled at her. Frightened, she hurried down the hall to report at the nurse's station that rehab seemed to have had no appreciable effect on Dr. House.

House stepped into the conference room and was greeted with silence. Foreman and Chase simply glanced in his direction, but Cameron, who was sitting at her desk, engrossed in something on the computer, never even looked up. He hadn't expected a welcome back party, but Cuddy would have told them he was coming back today. A 'nice to see you' wouldn't have been out of line.

"No balloons, no streamers?" House snarked. "Geez, what's a guy gotta do to get a little love around here?"

"Cuddy said no stripper and we didn't have any other ideas," Foreman quipped.

"Nice. So, did you kids behave yourselves while I was gone?" House asked, as he made himself a cup of coffee. He took a sip and grimaced. "Who made this?"

"I did," Chase answered.

"Well, now you're not allowed to touch my markers or the coffee pot," House ordered. "Cameron, could you please make us something that doesn't taste like raw sewage?"

"I'm not your secretary, make your own coffee," Cameron returned, without looking up. House noted the icy tone in her voice and mock shivered.

"Brrrr. Okay, I guess Foreman will be making coffee. So, new patient?" House asked, sitting beside Chase. Foreman rolled his eyes, but got up to make coffee anyway.

"Yeah, Cuddy dropped it off this morning," Chase passed him a file. "The ER can't figure it out."

"Shocking," House said, reviewing the file and standing up to begin writing the patient's symptoms on the board. "Dr. Cameron, care to join the differential?" House began writing.

20-Year Old Male

Headache

Dizziness

Chest Pain

Fatigue

Muscle weakness

Loss of Consciousness

"Hit me," House turned to his team for suggestions.

"How did the symptoms present?" Cameron asked. House tossed her the file.

"This guy could just have a bad cold. We need something besides this to go on, these symptoms fit about a dozen ailments without even considering anything unusual," Foreman said, as he finished making a fresh pot of coffee. "What's so special about this?"

"Sudden onset while after a vacation at the beach," Cameron read. "He was driving home with his friends when he fell unconscious. They thought he was sleeping, but when they stopped for gas they couldn't wake him. Sounds like heat stroke," Cameron suggested.

"Or alcohol poisoning, he's 20 and he's not on vacation with Mum and Dad," Chase suggested.

"Except his Blood Alcohol was zero and he's been in the ER over 12 hours and hasn't responded to IV fluids. In fact, he's only starting experiencing the muscle weakness since he got here. It's something else," Foreman noted, reviewing his copy of the file.

"Foreman's right, this is too vague. Cameron, get started on the blood work. I want a full tox screen this time, not just an alcohol level. Chase you go talk to the patient and Foreman you go scare the hell out of the friends. Tell them he's dying, see who cracks," House commanded.

Foreman and Chase left together, discussing their strategy for scaring the hell out of a bunch of twenty-somethings. House expected Cameron to stay to welcome him back, but she stood and left the room without so much as a glance in his direction. Wilson was right; something was definitely off about her.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

House waited in his office, juggling his tennis ball and two pairs of gym socks he'd found in the bottom of his duffel bag. Foreman and Chase came in and just watched for a minute.

"My hands are occupied, not my ears, speak," House commanded, still juggling.

"Nothing to say," Chase reported. "The kid won't say anything. He says he doesn't remember anything, he just fell asleep in the car and then when they finally woke him up he felt awful. So maybe loss of consciousness was the first symptom that presented?"

"Foreman?" House asked.

"I didn't do any better. None of the friends will cop to taking anything or giving him anything. They all seem genuinely worried about him, and none of them seem like they're on anything either. One of them told me that they all went scuba diving while they were on vacation, but that was several days ago and he only just got sick now so I don't thing it's of any help to us," Foreman said.

"Did the tox screen show anything?" Chase asked.

"Don't know, Cameron's not back yet," House answered.

"I'll go check on her," Chase replied. House dropped his tennis ball.

"No, I'll go. She's taking too long. Must have gotten used to being in charge. I guess I need to remind her who's the boss." House tossed the socks at the boys, smirking as Chase realized the pair he'd caught had been worn.


	7. Chapter 7

Please review, it makes me smile!

Chapter 7

House went to find Cameron in the lab. They didn't do a lot of talking about personal stuff at work, but they'd always had their best conversations in the lab. Something about having stuff to occupy yourself with, so you didn't have to look the other one in the eye, he thought. He was surprised, and then annoyed, not to find her there.

House wasn't really sure where else to look for her. It was just so unlike Cameron to not be in the lab, running tests, that he was momentarily at a loss. Then he remembered what Wilson said about catching her smoking on Friday.

Still not over the fact the he could actually take the stairs, House took the stairs two at a time, pausing only when he reached the door leading to the roof. He could smell cigarette smoke and he had a feeling he knew who was out here. Pushing the door open slowly, he stuck his head through the opening and saw Cameron, her back resting against the roof ledge with a cigarette in her right hand. House stepped out onto the roof, and Cameron jumped a little.

"Damn," she swore, partly under her breath but still loud enough on the near silent roof for House to hear.

"Cameron, you're smoking," House stated flatly.

"Figured that out all by yourself, Dr. House?" Cameron replied, her voice equally devoid of emotion.

"You don't smoke," House said.

"All evidence to the contrary," Cameron replied, taking a drag and blowing the smoke in his direction.

"Why aren't you in the lab?" House tried another tack. He was going to make Cameron talk to him, and if he had to trick her into it, so be it.

"The techs are perfectly capable of running tox screens. That is what they get paid for. They'll page me when the results are ready," Cameron replied.

"That wasn't really my point," House explained patiently. She always hated it when he talked to her like she was a child. Maybe he could goad her into getting angry and yelling about whatever was bothering her. "My point was, that you never leave lab tests up to the techs. You always sit in the lab and run them yourself. Sometimes you run them twice just be sure. It's an anal thing, I'm sure. So why aren't you doing it today?"

"What difference does it make?" Cameron asked tiredly.

"It's an anomaly. Anomalies bug me." House shrugged.

"I felt like a smoke," Cameron answered.

"Okay. We can go back to that. Since when do you smoke?" House asked.

"I smoked in high school. I quit when I went to college, and I started again last week. Currently I'm smoking about a half a pack a day. I prefer menthols. Is there any other information you need?" Cameron's voice was laced with sarcasm, which House took as a good sign. It meant he was getting to her.

"Yes, just one more thing," House answered. Cameron looked at him, waiting. "Why?"

"Why, what?"

"Why did you start smoking again now?" House asked outright.

"I don't know, I just did. Look, I really don't want to talk to you," Cameron said.

"Anything else you want to tell me?" House asked.

"Like what? That I started doing drugs again? That I'm having sex with my dealer because I can't afford to pay him? That's what you're thinking, right? I'm not. As hard as this may be for you, Dr. House, you can't always figure everything out. I felt like smoking, so I'm smoking. That's it."

House began to question her about this when her pager went off. She took it from her belt and read the message. Taking a last drag on her cigarette, she crushed it against the ledge and tossed in an old coffee can that the orderlies kept on the roof for butts.

"You're test results are ready," she said as she passed him, opening the door and starting down the stairs.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Thanks to all who reviewed. I realize Cameron has been slightly out of character these last couple of chapters, but it won't be for long. She had some personal issues that will be revealed soon, and her worries about House being in rehab & being in charge have simply gotten the better of her. Thank to all those who are reading, and please keep reviewing!

Chapter 8

Cameron scanned the results the lab tech gave her before handing them to House. House read them over and arched an eyebrow at Cameron.

"Tox screen is clear," House said.

"I can read, too," Cameron deadpanned.

"Okay," House drawled. This bitchy Cameron was throwing him all off his game. It was tough to be the king of snark when Cameron kept beating him to the punch. "Why don't you go pick up the boys and I'll start dinner?"

Cameron merely stared at him for a second or two before turning to page Foreman and Chase to the conference room.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

House and Cameron sat staring at each other across the glass table, waiting for Foreman and Chase to answer their pagers. Well, House was staring at Cameron. Cameron faced in House's direction, but was not really looking at him, her eyes unfocused. House thought her eyes looked slightly glassy. If he hadn't known she wasn't sick he might have thought she was feverish. But, perhaps it was something a little less innocent. Was she really using drugs again? A horrible thought struck House; had she been driven to this because of his leaving to go to rehab and putting her in charge? Had he been wrong, was it really too much for her to handle?

House looked at her with new concern. She stared blankly forward, still not seeing the room around her. She took in a deep, quiet breath and let out an even softer sigh. House, sensing that she might be willing to talk now that she wasn't raging at him, leaned forward and placed his hand on her arm, but before he could speak Foreman and Chase came in and House jerked his arm back.

"We just left Derek's room, and we've got new symptoms, joint pain and difficulty breathing," Chase said to House, sitting down next to Cameron. Foreman went to make himself a cup of coffee while House added these new symptoms to the whiteboard.

"Okay, who wants to buy a vowel?" House asked his team, back to them as he stared at the list.

"What about…" Cameron began.

"Cameron, if you say lupus I'm going to make you eat that chart," House warned.

"May I finish?" Cameron asked loudly. Foreman and Chase shared a look. "Just because his tox screen is clear now, doesn't mean it's not drugs. These symptoms could be the result of long term amphetamine abuse."

"Suddenly everybody's a drug addict?" House asked, turning around. "Now I don't feel special." He spoke to the room, but his eyes locked with Cameron's. Foreman and Chase subtly backed up, not wanting to get in the middle of a confrontation between House and the new Cameron.

They'd noticed the change in Cameron's personality over the past weeks and had learned very quickly it was best not to piss her off. After two years, they were used to House's insanity. And at the very least, most of his tirades were fueled by his desire to solve a case. Cameron was angry about everything.

"How about hemochromatosis?" Foreman asked, hoping to break the tension.

"Good," House replied, but did not look away from Cameron. "Anything else?"

"Lyme disease," Chase offered.

"Also good," House said, still staring at her. He would not be the one to back down. "Go run the tests, let me know which one it is."

Foreman and Chase both left, eager to be out of the room. House and Cameron continued to stare at each other. The longer he stared, the more he felt like she wasn't angry with him. It made him feel marginally better. He assumed she'd be the one to back down, but maybe five hours with the new Cameron wasn't sufficient time for analysis, because she wasn't budging.

Cameron stared at him and willed herself not look away, and not to cry. She'd been so angry the last few weeks; she'd been holding it all in, knowing that if she let go even a little, there would be no stopping it. The sobbing and the screaming would follow and she couldn't afford that now. She had so desperately hoped that they wouldn't get a case on House's first day back, so she could just go home and cry. But fate had once again decided to frown on her, and so here she was, stoically trying to be strong.

House could no longer stand there are stare at her. He let his eyes drop to the floor, and even though she didn't make a sound he could feel her relief across the room. He looked up and noticed her run a shaky hand across her face, revealing a look of such utter exhaustion that House was amazed she was able to move at all.

"Cameron, go home. The boys and I can handle this case. You need some rest," House said, without even a trace of sarcasm in his voice. She gave him a look that was somewhere between a warning not to pity her and a thank you for noticing, as she stood and stepped out from behind the table.

"I'll be fine," she replied.

"You're not fine," House retorted. "You're exhausted, belligerent, rude and unfeeling. You're sneaking out of work to smoke and do who knows what else. You're like the anti-Cameron."

"You mean I'm like you," Cameron responded, calmly but with force.

"Yeah," House said softly, stepping to his left so that he faced Cameron directly. "We can't have two of me. It'll never work out."

Cameron looked at him in surprise. Was he talking about at work, or about something else?

"Right, can't have someone working for you who might actually disagree with you," Cameron said sarcastically.

"That's not what I meant," House said quietly, and he stepped forward and grabbed Cameron roughly by the arms, pressing her body close to his. She opened her mouth to protest but he silenced her with a kiss that had been building since the day he'd left for rehab. She kissed him back, hard, but as she did so he felt the tears begin to slide down her face. He pulled back and looked at her; she silently shook her head, the tears drying almost as quickly as they had fallen.

"Not now," Cameron said. "I'll never get through the whole story without crying my eyes out and we have a patient."

"You're coming home with me, and tell me whatever this is and then you're going to bed and staying there for at least twelve hours if I have to tie you up," House commanded. Cameron nodded. "Of course, once I have you tied up I'll probably want to experiment a little, so you'll need a few hours extra rest," he joked, and Cameron smiled.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

At House's insistence, Cameron went to lie down in his office while he made a fresh pot of coffee. Sitting in the conference room, he stared at the whiteboard and tried to piece together the latest puzzle, but his heart just wasn't in it. Every few minutes, his eyes would slide across the room to his office, as he checked to see if Cameron was really sleeping.

Foreman and Chase came in behind him and House turned, expecting them to tell him it had been Lyme disease. The looks on their faces immediately told him they were still on the wrong track.

"Negative on both hemochromatosis and Lyme disease," Foreman announced.

"And we've got new symptoms," Chase added. "Numbness in his extremities and some abdominal pain."

"I'll eat the chart if you want, but we should at least test for lupus," Cameron said, coming in from House's office.

"You don't get lupus driving home from the beach," House said, but with less sarcasm than normal. Something was bugging him. "Who actually examined the patient?"

"I did," Chase answered.

"Does he have a rash?" House asked.

"He's sunburned from head to toe, his whole body looks like a rash. Why?"

"Has he been scratching?" House asked the ducklings.

"Of course, his skin is peeling like crazy," Chase answered. Where was House going with this?

"It's not just a sunburn," House said. He stood up and left his ducklings staring after him as he went to see his patient.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"So, this was obviously your first time scuba diving," House said to the patient as he walked into the room.

"What?" Derek asked, groggy, removing the oxygen mask from his mouth to speak, and the replacing it.

"Scuba diving, this vacation was the first time you'd ever done it," House repeated.

"Yeah, so what?" Derek asked.

"Did you listen to your instructor when he warned you about all the bad things that could happen to you if you didn't do it right?" House asked him.

"Sure," Derek said.

"And did you think he made all that stuff up to scare you, or did it occur to you that maybe he knew what he was talking about?" House continued.

"What are you talking about?" Derek asked, confused.

"Okay, you're barely breathing and you're in pain, so right now at least you have an excuse for being a moron. You went back out diving alone, without the instructor or any of your friends. Then you surfaced too quickly and got decompression sickness, because like every other 20 year old male on the planet, you think you're Superman and nothing bad will happen to you," House explained. "Why did you go back out by yourself?"

Derek looked away from House, embarrassed. House made a frustrated noise and grabbed Derek by the arm.

"Look, if we don't know for sure that this is what's wrong with you, we can't treat you for it. And if we do nothing, you're just going to get worse until eventually you die. I say eventually because I don't know exactly how long it will take but since it's only been about six hours since you got here and you've already presented with about a dozen symptoms I'm going to say that was the last vacation you'll ever take. Now tell me what you did," House commanded.

"There was this really pretty reef we saw, and then a sunken ship. We explored it for a little while, but we had to get back and we couldn't collect anything. You know, like a souvenir. Just as we were surfacing, Jodi, that's the blonde, she saw this like candleholder thing, but the instructor wouldn't let her dive back down to get it. So I figured if I got it for her…" he let his voice trail off, partly from embarrassment and partly because the more he talked the harder it was to breathe. House grabbed the mask and prevented him from placing it back on his face.

"So you went back out alone to get it and you screwed up," House said. "Why didn't you tell anybody when you got back?"

"Because I didn't get the candle-holder. I couldn't find it again. How stupid would I look to her if I couldn't get it and I got myself sick?" Derek choked out, desperately. House relented, and let him put the mask back on.

"You're an idiot. But at least you won't be a dead idiot," House said to him. He stepped out of the room, where Foreman and Chase were waiting. "Treat him for decompression sickness. The moron went out diving alone to try to impress a girl."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: This is the last of Cameron's story about her deep, dark past. I know it's kind of intense, but I promise some lighter times are coming. Thanks to all who are reading & reviewing.

Chapter 10

Cameron allowed House to lead her out of the hospital and onto his bike. She wrapped her arms tightly around his waist this time with no hesitation. The ride home was slower than she remembered their last ride being, and she wondered why. She could have used a little speed to clear her mind. Arriving at House's apartment, she got off the bike and was so busy trying to unfasten the helmet that she didn't notice House's face as he got off.

"Here, go ahead and let yourself in," House said, handing Cameron the keys. "I'll take care of the helmet." She handed it to him silently and went inside.

Once her back was turned, House began to rub his right let. It hurt. Not terribly, but for the first time in the few months since his ketamine treatment. He paused for just a moment to think about what this meant, but he pushed it out of his mind, unwilling to consider that the treatment was wearing off. It could be just a cramp, after all. He wasn't exactly a kid anymore. He walked slowly inside, his limp just slightly more noticeable than it had been.

Cameron was sitting on his couch, staring at the TV although it wasn't on. House hung up his coat and dropped his bag on the floor. Without consulting Cameron, he picked up the phone and ordered Chinese food. He sat down on the couch next to Cameron, and put his arm around her shoulders.

"Talk," he said. Cameron took a deep breath.

"That patient we had last week," Cameron began. "The one who was pregnant, she just reminded me of things I haven't thought about in a long time."

"It wasn't your fault," House said simply.

"Not this time," Cameron said, and House wondered what she meant by that. Had she lost a pregnant patient before when it was her fault?

"You once asked me if I'd ever lost a child, do you remember?" House nodded yes. "Then you said you pulled my medical records and saw I'd never been prescribed folic acid, which meant I'd never been pregnant." House nodded his agreement again; this was all true, and not news to him. "You were wrong."

House looked at her incredulously. He realized that he'd really only glanced at her medical records, but he was pretty sure he would have noticed a pregnancy in there.

"When?" House asked.

"When I was in high school, of course. I was a smart girl, but being high all the time does tend to mess with your judgment. I got pregnant. It was bound to happen, with all the pills I was getting from my dealer I owed him quite a bit. He never missed a payment." Cameron looked at House. She wanted to continue, but she wasn't sure he really wanted to hear this. He just looked at her.

"My parents were very religious. I was too, actually. I knew if I told my parents they'd want me to get married, and who was I going to tell them the father was, my dealer? He wouldn't have cared anyway. I knew if they found out I'd never get out of that town. So, I lied," Cameron paused when she heard a knock at the door. House got up and paid the delivery boy who'd brought their food and then came back to sit next to Cameron again, setting the bag on the coffee table.

"I told my parents I made friends with a new girl at school and I was going to stay at her house for the weekend and we were going to study. They never asked me a lot of questions; they had no reason to think I would lie. I took the bus to the city and went to a free clinic. I gave them a fake name, it was pretty simple." By now, Cameron had begun to cry. House knew what was coming next, but he also knew Cameron needed to tell this story to somebody. He took the food out of the bag while she cried, and handed her a container of stir-fried vegetables and a set of chopsticks. She smiled at him, and began pushing the food around.

"You had an abortion," House said, sensing that she was unable to actually say the words. She nodded in silence.

"I didn't follow the instructions they gave me. I couldn't; I had to work and study and to do that I needed the drugs. I got an infection. I had to go back to the clinic, and that's when I found out. I had so much scarring on my fallopian tubes, that I would not be able to get pregnant again. I can't have children." She put the container of food on the table and rested her head in her hands.

"That woman," she spoke to the floor. "She knew she was pregnant and she knew she was sick. She was afraid if her boyfriend found out that he'd want to get married and keep the baby and she didn't want it. So she didn't go to the doctor. She knew something was wrong with her, but she didn't care. She killed her baby just like I killed mine." Now Cameron began to sob, and House wasn't sure what to do. He'd never been good with crying women, but this was Cameron, so he put his arms around her and held her tight while she cried.

She didn't cry for long. He was amazed at her strength. He'd always thought she was weak for letting the babies and the pregnant moms get to her so easily. Now he knew better. She wiped her face and looked at him, and he was struck by just how beautiful she was, even in her pain.

"Eat that," he said. She smirked at him. "When was the last time you ate anything?" He asked her.

"I don't remember," Cameron confessed.

"Then eat, before you collapse. You may be tiny, and my leg may be okay, but I'm not carrying you to bed if you pass out from hunger," House warned, and she chuckled a bit.

"I've never told anyone that before. Not my parents, not a friend. I never even told my husband." House gave her a strange look when she said that. "He had enough to deal with, he didn't need my drama on him too," Cameron explained.

"Why me?" House asked.

"Who else would I tell?" She asked back. He nodded at her slowly, and they ate in a companionable silence.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Sorry I didn't write any more detail, but as much as I love to read smut, I just cannot write it.

Chapter 11

After they'd finished eating, House and Cameron sat on the couch and watched TV. Cameron wasn't paying attention; she was experiencing a fairly severe nicotine fit. She couldn't remember the last time she'd wanted a cigarette so badly. She'd only been smoking again for a few weeks! She shifted in her seat, jostling House a bit. House glanced at her, and could tell immediately what was wrong. He grinned. He decided to say nothing, and see how long she could hold out.

Not long, as it turned out. After another minute of picking invisible pieces of lint off her pants and crossing her legs, Cameron stood up.

"I'm going outside for some fresh air," she announced, and went out the door. House grinned, shaking his head. She could keep a secret like that for twelve or thirteen years, but she was still so transparent about wanting a cigarette. He got up and followed her outside.

He found her sitting on the steps to his building, puffing gloriously. Sitting carefully next to her, he stared straight ahead into the street.

"Fresh air, huh?" House asked. Cameron didn't reply, but he saw her blush a little out of the corner of his eye. "Those things will kill you."

"Gee, I never heard that before. Good thing you're a doctor, or I would never have known," Cameron replied.

"I thought we already talked about this. Only one of us can be the sarcastic jerk in this relationship, and I have seniority," House said.

"Relationship?" Cameron asked, smiling. House looked at the ground between his feet. He hadn't really meant to say that, but now that he had… "Don't worry, I won't tell anybody you said it," Cameron reassured him. She took one last drag on her cigarette, and flicked it into the street.

"Can I ask you something?" Cameron said, turning to House. House tensed. He had a feeling she was going to ask about Paula. In fact, he was a little surprised she hadn't asked about it already.

"I didn't sleep with her," House blurted.

"I know," Cameron replied. House looked questioningly at her. "I asked Wilson. I didn't think you'd really want to talk about it."

"I don't," House said quickly. They sat in silence for a moment.

"Why did you leave me in charge?" Cameron asked him.

"You had to learn sometime. I thought it might be easier without me in the audience," House answered. Cameron nodded. After a few minutes of silence, Cameron reached in her pocket and pulled out her pack of cigarettes. House laid his hands over hers and looked her in the eyes.

"You know," he drawled, in a deep, low voice, "I'm sure we could put your oral fixation to better use."

"What did you have in mind?" Cameron asked, breathless. His eyes always did that to her.

House didn't answer; instead he leaned forward and kissed her. Her mouth opened, and House explored. He let go of her hands and plunged his hands into her hair. Cameron dropped her cigarettes and took hold of his shirt, pulling him closer. They kissed passionately, until Cameron began to get the feeling they were being watched. She broke apart from House, and realized they were still outside.

"Let's go inside," she suggested, standing. She offered House a hand, pulling him up to

follow her. Closing the door behind her, Cameron turned to look at House shyly.

Before she could say a word, House pressed her against the door, his body pinning her in place. He kissed her hard, and she responded. Cameron reached her hands under his t-shirt and lightly ran her nails down his chest and stomach. House's lips left Cameron's mouth and began a slow path across her jaw, kissing down her neck to her collarbone. House brought his hands forward and began unbuttoning her blouse, to reveal a lacy, white bra. He grinned wickedly at her before dropping his head to trail his tongue in an arch just above its lacy edge. Cameron cupped his face with her hands and pulled him back to her lips. Kissing him gently, she whispered against his lips. House didn't need to be asked twice. He took her by the hand and led her to the bedroom.

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House woke during the night, initially confused by the hair tickling his nose and sticking to his stubble. Letting his eyes adjust to the darkness, he stared at a sleeping Allison Cameron in his bed. He'd only just begun to grin, self-satisfied, when he realized why he'd woken up. His leg hurt. It was not just sore; it hurt. He grimaced, both at the physical pain he felt and the emotional pain he feared. He closed his eyes, determined that by a sheer force of will he could make his leg stop hurting. He rubbed it, and the pain lessened.

House knew he wouldn't get back to sleep unassisted, but he had nothing in the house to help him sleep. He closed his eyes, preparing himself for a long night awake, when Cameron rolled over in her sleep and snuggled closely against him, flinging her arm across his chest. He smiled, and wrapped his arm around her. Of course his leg hurt, he reasoned to himself, remembering what he'd been doing a few hours ago. Comforted, he slowly drifted back to sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Wilson arrived as usual on Tuesday morning to pick House up for work. They always drove in together on Tuesdays, so they could drive back and watch The L-Word together. Wilson was just raising his hand to knock on the door when it was wrenched open and House stepped out. Wilson stared at him, aghast.

"You're ready," Wilson stated, amazed.

"And I tied my shoes all by myself. Are you proud?" House asked, as he stepped onto the sidewalk and walked toward Wilson's car.

"Very. Why are you ready so early?" Wilson asked, opening his door and getting in. House got in beside him and shut his door quietly.

"Couldn't sleep," House replied simply.

"Is it your leg?" Wilson asked, concerned.

"My leg is fine," House lied. Actually, his leg hurt like hll but he wasn't telling Wilson that. He wasn't telling anybody that.

"You're not telling me something," Wilson said, starting the car. He looked at House before pulling out into traffic. Wilson started to say something else, and House reached over and turned the radio on full volume. He looked at Wilson and then pointed to his ears, indicating he couldn't hear what Wilson was saying. Wilson just shook his head and held up one hand in surrender.

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Wilson and House entered the hospital together, and parted ways as Wilson headed for the stairs and House for the elevators. This was not lost on Wilson. Since the ketamine treatment, he knew House had been sleeping better. A sudden bout of insomnia coupled with his taking the elevator was all it took to arouse suspicion for Wilson. House's leg hurt.

Changing his mind, Wilson retreated back down the stairs and entered Cuddy's office instead. She looked up from her desk and smiled; pleased he stopped in to say good morning. The smile faded when she took note of his expression.

"What's wrong?" Cuddy asked.

"I think the treatment is wearing off," Wilson answered, sitting on her couch.

"Did he say something to you?" Cuddy asked, concerned.

"Not directly, but he was up early this morning because he couldn't sleep and he took the elevator this morning instead of the stairs," Wilson replied.

"James, I know you're worried about him, but that doesn't sound like much to go on. Don't jump to any conclusions. You'll only pss him off if he thinks you're prying," Cuddy warned, coming to sit beside him on the couch.

"I know, you're right," Wilson answered. He rubbed his hands across his face and smiled at her. "Meet me for lunch?"

"I can't, I have a meeting with some donors today. Dinner?"

"It's Tuesday," Wilson reminded her.

"Right, The L-Word. Well, how about breakfast tomorrow?" Cuddy asked.

Wilson glanced into the hall before leaning in close. "How about I stop by late and cook pancakes in the morning?" Cuddy leaned in too, kissing him on an especially sensitive spot she'd discovered just behind his left ear.

"I'll wait up," she breathed, and then left him on the couch to return to her desk and her paperwork. She glanced at him as he slowly stood to leave, admiring her handiwork. She thought keeping him in line might be easier than House thought.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

House dropped his bag on the chair in his office and went to make a pot of coffee. It was far too early for Foreman to be in, and he sincerely hoped that if Chase had come in early he'd had the good sense to stay away from the coffee maker. Seeing the lights in the conference room still off, House knew he was the first to arrive. He prepared a pot of coffee and stood impatiently waiting for it to brew. He never appreciated the fact that Cameron was usually an early riser and made great coffee more than when he had to make it himself and wait.

The pot finally finished brewing as Chase and Foreman entered together. They paused when they noticed House waiting for coffee to brew. Beyond the amazement at House being in before them, it meant Cameron wasn't in and House already knew about it.

"No Cameron today?" Chase asked. No matter how many times he got stung, he never hesitated in asking the obvious question.

"She's sitting right there, can't you see her?" House asked, feigning concern. Chase rolled his eyes and House gave him a withering look. "I gave Cameron the day off."

Foreman and Chase exchanged a look at that, and Chase was on the verge of asking another question, which would have undoubtedly been none of their business, but Foreman kicked his foot and shook his head. They both knew something was going on between Cameron and House, but as far as Foreman was concerned, the less information he had the better. Chase wasn't sure he felt the same way, but he definitely didn't want to step on House's toes so soon after his return, so he let it go.

"No patient today?" House asked the boys.

"Sorry, no inexplicable diseases today," Foreman replied.

"The nerve of people, not almost dying. How am I supposed to amuse myself?" House asked.

"You could work your clinic hours," a voice from the hall said, and House cringed.

"Cuddy, I thought we had a rule about you torturing me before I've had any coffee," House whined. Cuddy walked into the room and took the red mug from House's hands. She emptied the contents into one of the paper coffee cups and put a lid on top. She handed it back to House.

"Now you can take it with you," Cuddy said, her voice thick with false sincerity.

House grumbled, but walked out into the hall to go to the clinic. Cuddy nodded to the boys and followed behind House. Truthfully, House could have waited to sign in to the clinic, but after speaking to Wilson, Cuddy wanted to check out House's leg for herself. His limp was still barely noticeable, but the fact that he once again opted for the elevator did not escape Cuddy's attention. Maybe James was right?

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cameron woke up and looked around, confused momentarily as to where she was. Grinning, she remembered she was in House's bed. She glanced at the alarm clock and was startled to see it was nearly noon. She'd slept most of the day away. Why hadn't House gotten her up? In fact, where was House? She got up from bed, and grabbed a t-shirt from the top of House's hamper. Slipping it over her head, she opened the door and walked down the hall to find the living room empty. After further inspection, she found the bathroom and kitchen empty as well. House had gone to work and left her here alone. He hadn't even left a note. Cameron wasn't sure whether to be annoyed he'd left without saying anything, or touched that he'd apparently given her the day off from work.

Cameron went back to the kitchen and began searching for something to eat that hadn't come from a take-out place. She was starving, and the only thing she found that wasn't complete junk food was a loaf of bread and some peanut butter. Shaking her head, she made herself two slices of peanut butter toast and a cup of coffee. Taking them to the living room, she settled on the couch and looked around. Eating her toast, she let her eyes roam. Besides the piano, the dominant feature of the room was the massive bookcases. One was filled with a staggering collection of CDs, records and tapes, the other with books and journals. Cameron knew House loved music, but his collection was truly a sight.

Remembering his confession of a few months ago, she let her curiosity get the better of her and began searching through his collection looking for a secret stash of country music. Having grown up in the mid-west, Cameron had listened to country music for most of her life. She found it amusing that a man who regularly quoted Mick Jagger didn't hate all country music. The collection was extremely well organized, something Cameron wouldn't have guessed from House's filing and charting at work. Quickly scanning what was in easy reach, Cameron decided he'd be hiding things on the top shelf. Dragging over the step stool, she found what she was looking for. Toby Keith, Johnny Cash, Sugarland, Chris Ledoux, Hank Williams, Big N Rich.

A knock at the door startled Cameron so that she nearly fell off the stool. She steadied herself, and looked at the door, unsure of what to do. She didn't really feel like she should answer House's door, but what if it was important? And who was here in the middle of the day expecting him to be home? The knock came again, louder this time and longer. Cameron sighed. Forgetting that she was wearing nothing but an oversized t-shirt, she stepped down from the stool and opened the door to see a pretty, young, brunette standing before her.

"Hi, honey. I'm looking for Greg," the woman said.

"Uh, he's at work. I can give him a message if you'd like," Cameron responded. She was really curious as to who this woman was who felt free stop by House's place and called him Greg. She hadn't even called him Greg, not even last night.

"No, I see he's found a replacement. It's too bad really; he was a nice one. Well, he was nice to me anyways. He must really like you honey, with me it was just here's your money and out the door as soon as we were through," the woman said conversationally. Cameron was shocked, as she realized who this woman was. She couldn't let her get away without getting some more information.

"So you're Paula?" she asked, trying to sound normal.

"Yeah, he mentioned me?" Paula asked, sounding flattered.

"Sort of. I'm not stealing away a regular thing here, am I?" Cameron asked, as calmly as possible.

"No, honey, you're not. It's fine; he hasn't seen me in a while. He called me a month ago, but not for that, he needed some drugs or something? And he couldn't get them, you know. So I tried to get them for him, but the doctor at the hospital knew I was faking and I couldn't get them after all. He wasn't mad, was he?" she asked.

"No, he wasn't mad. He's fine now. Listen, I have to get out of here…" Cameron just let her voice trail off.

"Oh, sure, I know how it is. You be careful," Paula told her, turning and walking off.

"I think Greg better be careful," Cameron muttered to herself, shutting the door softly.

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

For the third time since lunch, House picked up the phone and dialed his home telephone number. It rang several times before the answering machine picked up.

"Cameron, are you still sleeping? Cameron?" House said. Frustrated, House dialed Cameron's cell phone, which rang three times before switching to voice mail. He hung up without leaving a message. Finally, he called her home phone and again, got the machine. He hung up, as he'd already left her a message at home. He looked at his watch; it was now almost three o'clock. Either she'd slept fifteen straight hours or she was avoiding him. He closed his eyes. This must be a new record, he thought to himself, we haven't even been together an entire day and I'm already in trouble.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Just past five, Wilson came to House's office. House picked up his bag and they walked to the elevators wordlessly. Wilson shot House a look, but said nothing. He really wanted to know what was going on, but he knew it would have to wait until after House had eaten and had a couple of beers.

They remained quiet the entire ride home. Now Wilson knew that something was going on, House was only this quiet when he was brooding about something. There are really only a few things that can keep House quiet, his leg being among them. Wilson's concern caused him to be unusually observant. Arriving at House's apartment, Wilson was surprised that rather than flopping himself on the couch, as usual, House went back to his bedroom and looked in. He then proceeded to look in the bathroom and finally the kitchen.

"Lost something?" Wilson asked.

"What? No, just looking," House said, going to the answering machine and erasing all the messages without listening. Curious, Wilson thought.

"Chinese or pizza?" Wilson asked.

"Huh? Whatever you want," House answered, now looking at the refrigerator and then going through the papers on his desk.

"Okay, what's going on? Since when do you not care what we eat?" Wilson demanded. House didn't look at him, but sat on the couch. Wilson stared at him, waiting. "I know there's something you want to tell me," Wilson said. Finally, in desperation, Wilson grabbed House's Gameboy from the coffee table and took it into the bathroom. House heard a flush and jumped.

"You didn't!" He shouted at Wilson as he charged into the bathroom. Wilson stood over the toilet, holding the Gameboy precariously over the bowl, his other hand resting on the handle.

"No, but I will if you don't start talking," Wilson said, waving the Gameboy over the toilet a bit. House looked down at the floor, and the down the hall.

"I slept with Cameron," House said. Wilson gave House a smug look and handed over the Gameboy.

"Was that really so hard?" Wilson asked and went back to the living room. House remained in the bathroom for a moment, preparing himself for the girlish squealing about to come. Mentally ready, he walked back to the living room.

House sat on the couch beside Wilson.

"This isn't the reaction I was expecting," Wilson said.

"What reaction is that?" House asked.

"Miserable and brooding," Wilson answered. "I expected you to be jumping for joy. So what went wrong?"

"I don't know; she won't talk to me," House said.

"Well, she must have said something," Wilson prodded. House cringed.

"We haven't actually spoken since we …" House's voice trailed off and Wilson looked at him with disgust.

"You didn't say anything? You spent two years trying to push her away, then you asked her to wait for you while you went to rehab, slept with her and then you said nothing! You must be the most idiotic genius on earth!" Wilson shouted. House closed his eyes and waited as patiently as possible for the lecture to end. "Oh my God, was she here this morning? Is that why you pushed me out the door?"

"She was sleeping and I didn't want to wake her," House answered. Wilson stood up and put on his jacket.

"I'm leaving and so are you. Go over there and apologize to her before she decides you aren't worth it." He threw House's jacket and keys at him and held the door open, waiting for House to leave.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cuddy was surprised when she opened the door to find Wilson. He stepped in and took off his coat.

"You're early," Cuddy said, giving him a kiss and taking his coat.

"And you owe me $100," Wilson said smugly.

"What? Wait, are you serious? Already, he's only been home a couple of days!" Cuddy said.

"Last night," Wilson confirmed, sitting on the couch and patting the seat next to him. "I won't make you pay up yet though."

"A bet's a bet, I lost fair and square," Cuddy said, snuggling next to him.

"I know, but I may end up owing you a $100 tomorrow."

"He didn't even make it one day before he did something stupid?" Cuddy asked.

"Not sure," Wilson replied. "We'll have to wait and see."

"I hope it all works out for him," Cuddy sighed.

"Me too," Wilson said, placing his hand under her chin and tipping her head back. He placed a gentle kiss on her lips. "Let's worry about it tomorrow." She returned his kiss, and soon Greg House was the last thing on their minds.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

House arrived at work early the next morning. He hoped to catch Cameron before the boys came in. He'd gone to her apartment the night before as Wilson suggested, but after three phone calls, ten minutes of knocking on her door and two angry neighbors, he'd given up and gone home. By then his leg had been very sore. He took two ibuprophen, the strongest thing he had in the house, and was eventually able to get to sleep.

He went to his office first and dropped off his bag. Smelling coffee from the next room, he knew Cameron was already here. House stepped into the conference room and saw Cameron sitting at her desk, sorting through some mail. Unfortunately, Foreman was sitting at the conference table, head buried in a medical journal.

House said nothing. He walked to the coffee pot and poured himself a cup. He couldn't find the sugar. He rattled a few drawers and jangled the silverware, but Cameron didn't get up and get the sugar for him. House stood at the counter a moment longer before opening every drawer and pawing through them, spilling the contents of a few on the floor. Exasperated, Foreman got up and got House a packet of sugar. House glared at him, but took the sugar and mixed it into his coffee. Then he walked back into his office, leaving his mess behind.

Once the door between the office and the conference room had closed, Cameron got up and began helping Foreman clean up the mess. Foreman looked at her and debated whether or not to say anything.

"Sorry about that," Cameron spoke first.

"Don't apologize, you didn't do it," Foreman replied. He had a feeling Cameron wanted to talk, but he wasn't sure he really wanted to know. Chase coming in behind them saved him from having to either hear about their relationship troubles or tell her to keep it out of the office.

"What happened?" Chase asked, picking up a final few coffee stirrers and tossing them in the trash.

"House," Foreman replied. It was enough of an answer for Chase. He put down his bag and shrugged out of his jacket. Foreman and Cameron exchanged a glance over Chase's tie, but said nothing. House would only tear him apart about it later, why torture the poor guy?

As if on cue, House came back into the conference room. He looked at Chase, but didn't say a word. Instead, he went to Cameron's desk and opened the top drawer. He took out a pair of scissors and walked over to Chase. He grabbed Chase's tie and snipped it off just below the knot. Chase looked at him as though he had gone mad.

"What are you doing?" Chase shouted, backing away from House in fear and confusion.

House didn't respond. Instead, he threw his half of the tie in the trash, returned the scissors to Cameron's desk and went back to his office. Foreman and Cameron were unable to contain their laughter as Chase fumbled to remove what was left of his tie.

As the laughter continued in the conference room, Cuddy came into House's office to assign the team a new case. Well, most of the team. This was not going to be easy.

"New case?" House asked, trying to mask the hope in his voice. Avoiding work like the plague was fun, but only for a while. Then the gears in the brain began to spin wildly, and without a patient to focus on, House was likely to get into trouble.

"Before I give this to you, I have to tell you that Dr. Foreman cannot be involved with this case," Cuddy said.

"Are you trying to test my knowledge of neurological disorders? If you are, it was silly of you to have me hire a neurologist," House commented.

"The patient is a 35 year old male, presenting with fever, headaches, muscle and abdominal pain," Cuddy began reading from the file.

"Not interesting," House interrupted.

"He's been treated for a gastrointestinal virus, with no improvement. He was seeking a second opinion when he had a seizure," Cuddy continued, as if House hadn't spoken.

"Still not interesting," House pressed.

"The patient's name is Marcus Foreman," Cuddy said. "Foreman's older brother."

"That's interesting," House said. He stood from his chair and took the file from Cuddy. "I'll tell him."

"Be nice," Cuddy warned.

"Of course," House replied, his expression hurt.

House walked into the conference room with the file, and Foreman and Cameron managed to contain their laughter. Chase was fuming, but silently. One round of Chase-bashing per day was really more than enough. He wasn't going to give House any more fuel.

"Foreman, your brother is dying. Get out," House said. Foreman's face dropped.

"That's not funny House," Foreman said.

"Not being funny," House returned. He opened the file and began to read, "Marcus Foreman, 35, presents with fever, headaches, muscle and abdominal pain and seizures. See, it's all right here." House waved the file at him. Cuddy had followed from the office and gave House an indignant look.

"Foreman, he's being transferred upstairs now, if you'd like to see him," Cuddy told him sympathetically.

"Thanks," Foreman said quietly, and walked out of the conference room. Cuddy rounded on House.

"That was nice?" Cuddy barked.

"What? I didn't even call him Dr. Bling or anything," House rolled his eyes at Cuddy and picked up a marker to write the symptoms on the whiteboard. Cuddy turned and walked out quickly, deciding it wasn't worth her time.

"House, that wasn't nice," Cameron said quietly.

"I'm not nice," House answered. He turned to face his remaining ducklings. "So, ideas?"

"What's he been tested for?" Chase asked. House tossed him the file and Chase grimaced. "There's nothing in here. His doctor said he had a virus and sent him home."

"Go get a better history from the patient and do a full blood panel," House told him, and Chase left, taking the file with him.

Cameron looked at House and stood up slowly. She wanted to talk to him about Paula, but she wasn't sure what to say.

"Cameron, about yesterday," House began, but Cameron cut him off.

"It's okay," she said. "I know you didn't want to wake me, and I'm not upset about it."

"Then why didn't you answer the door, or your phone?" House asked. If she wasn't upset with him about leaving her, then she was acting really weird. Cameron hesitated, but decided it was probably best to get it over with.

"Paula stopped by your apartment yesterday." House dropped his eyes to the floor. He had not seen that coming. How was he going to explain this to Cameron? "You know what, I'm sorry. I was upset yesterday, but it's really none of my business. I know you haven't seen her lately, and what you did before has nothing to do with me, or us or whatever this is."

"How do you know I haven't seen her lately?" House asked. Had she talked to Wilson about this before talking to him? This could be setting up a bad pattern.

"She told me," Cameron answered. House gave her a questioning look. "Well, I asked her. She thought I was her replacement." Cameron said dryly.

"I could never afford you," House quipped. Cameron smirked. Typical House.

"I'll read between the lines and take that as a compliment," Cameron said. She stood to go. "I'm going to check on Foreman and Chase."

"So, we're okay?" House asked.

"As long as no more hookers show up on your doorstep," Cameron answered.

"Right, no more hookers," House said. "Silly to keep paying for it when you're giving it away," House said to her back as she walked out the door.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Foreman stood across from his brother's room. He wasn't ready to go inside yet. What could they say to each other? And why was he here, now? A young woman approached from down the hall, with two small children in tow. Foreman glanced at her, but paid her little attention, until she slid open the door to her brother's room and went inside. He knew his brother had gotten married, but hadn't realized he had two kids. It was too big a coincidence that this brother would just show up here. Their father must have sent him. Foreman took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He took the few steps across the hall and entered his brother's room.

"Eric," Marcus said when he entered.

"Marcus," Foreman replied. He looked at the floor, uncomfortable. They stood silently, but only for a moment, before one of the children, a boy of about 6, addressed Foreman.

"You look like Daddy," he said. The boy was right. Marcus had a slightly leaner face and build. He was only a few years older than Eric, but his face and slightly graying hair suggested years he had not yet passed. There could be no doubt about the family resemblance.

Looking down at the boy, Foreman was surprised by how much he looked like Marcus when he was young. Only a scar in the boy's right eyebrow broke the illusion that Foreman was looking at a young Marcus.

"You think I look like him?" Foreman asked the boy, who nodded.

"That's your Uncle Eric," his mother said to the boy. "This is David," she said to Foreman, "and that's Johnna," pointing to a little girl, about 3 years old, now sleeping on the chair in the corner of the room, "and I'm Nichelle. It's nice to meet you," she finished, as she extended a hand to Foreman.

"It's nice to meet you too," Foreman replied. "I wish it could have been under better circumstances."

"If these weren't the circumstances, you'd never have met her at all," Marcus said. Nichelle cringed. She knew that her husband and his brother hadn't spoken in many years, although even she had never heard the full story. But that didn't mean he couldn't at least be civil.

"Marcus, please, not in front of the children," Nichelle said, and Marcus turned his head to face the wall in frustration.

"It's okay," Foreman told her. "I wouldn't expect anything different."

Marcus's head snapped back to his wife and brother, but before he could tell Foreman to get out, Chase came into the room from the hall.

"Hi, my name's Dr. Chase. Am I interrupting something?" Chase asked, sensing the tension.

"Nope, I was just leaving," Foreman said, and did just that.

"Okay then. We need to get a little more information about your medical history and your symptoms, and we'll be getting some blood samples to run a few tests," Chase said, settling down in the remaining chair to begin taking notes.

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House slipped into coma guy's room, anxious to hide out from Cuddy and Wilson. Cameron had gone to help Chase with the blood tests, seeing as they were down a duckling on this one, so she was no problem for the moment. His leg hurt, again. He could no longer pretend that this was a one-time thing, or a muscle ache that was brought on by too much exercise. The pain was coming back.

He sat in the chair and put his leg up on coma guy's bed. He rubbed his leg, hoping to relieve some of the pain. It helped, but not much. The pain wasn't quite as bad as it was before the ketamine treatment, but it was small consolation. He'd only just finished rehab. If the pain became too intense, he couldn't go back to using the Vicodin. How would he manage?

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Cameron had taken the blood samples and gone to the lab to begin work. Chase was finishing up the history with Marcus and Nichelle. When he stepped outside the room, Nichelle followed.

"Dr. Chase?" she called.

"Yes?"

"He left out a few things, and I didn't want to scare the kids," Nichelle told him.

"Like what?"

"He's lost weight. I'm not sure how much, but it would have to be around ten pounds for me to notice," she hesitated. Chase placed a hand on her arm to encourage her to continue. "He's been wetting the bed, for a couple of days. And yesterday, he…he had an accident in the afternoon. I know he's embarrassed, but I thought you'd need to know." She looked at him with fear evident in her expression.

"Thank you," Chase said. "We're going to take good care of him." Nichelle nodded, and rejoined her family.

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House walked slowly back into the conference room, where Chase was looking through some test results. He barely looked up when House entered the room.

"Where's Foreman?" House asked.

"Avoiding his family," Chase muttered. House nodded.

"Cameron?"

"Don't know," Chase replied. "The history isn't helping. He started with fever, nausea and vomiting. Then the nausea and vomiting stopped, but not the fever, and then he started having abdominal pain and muscle pains."

"Blood work isn't going to be a lot of help," Cameron said from the doorway. She held the lab results out to House, who took them and looked them over.

"The white count is up, but not a lot. The red count is down, but not a lot. Wow, can you say ambiguous?" House dropped the test results on the table. Cameron sat down and began looking through Chase's notes.

"His blood pressure is elevated," Chase said, "but according to his wife he hasn't been to a doctor in years, so we don't know if that's a pre-existing condition or if it's related to whatever this is."

"Family history of hypertension," Foreman said, coming into the room and getting a cup of coffee. House, Cameron and Chase all stared at his back.

"Foreman, what part of get out did you not understand?" House snarked at him.

"I can't treat my brother, but that doesn't mean I can't be part of the differential. And whose family history are you going to trust, his or mine?" Foreman challenged.

"Good point. So, let's say the hypertension is unrelated. Where does that get us?"

"If the nausea and vomiting were the first symptoms, how about typhoid?" Chase suggested.

"No rash yet," House said slowly. "Okay, typhoid. What else?" House wrote typhoid on the board.

"Melioidosis," Cameron suggested.

"And?" House asked, writing melioidosis.

"Okay, I'll bite, lupus," Foreman suggested. House rolled his eyes, but wrote lupus anyway.

"Lead poisoning," Cameron added. House wrote that down as well.

"Okay, we need an ANA for lupus, a heavy metal level for lead, and blood cultures for typhoid and melioidosis. Go," he shooed them out of the office. Cameron and Chase gathered up some notes and left to run the tests. Foreman remained; he couldn't help treat his own brother.

"Having a nice little family reunion?" House asked with only a mild amount of sarcasm, sitting in the chair in the corner to relieve the pain in his leg.

"Sure," Foreman scoffed. "Haven't seen my brother in ten years, I just met his wife and two kids and he might be dying. We had a grand old time."

"So what happened? Did he steal your lunch box? Break your GI Joe?" House asked.

"You really don't need to know everything, House." Foreman said with disgust. "And if I did want to talk to somebody about my brother, you're the last person I'd pick." He stood and walked out.

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Foreman found Nichelle, David and Johnna in the waiting area outside Marcus's room. David and Johnna were sleeping on opposite ends of one of the couches, and Nichelle was sitting on the floor, her head resting back on the couch between their feet.

"Hey," Foreman said quietly, sitting on the couch across from Nichelle and the kids. He spoke quietly, not wanting to wake them.

"Hey," Nichelle replied. "Any news?"

"Not yet, we've only just started running the tests," Foreman told her.

"Eric, what happened between you two?" Nichelle asked. "He's never told me anything. Just that he had a younger brother who he didn't speak to anymore. I never wanted to push him about it, I'm sure you remember how stubborn he can be."

"Yeah," Foreman nodded ruefully. "When our mom got sick, he wanted me to come home. Not just to visit, he wanted me to drop out of school and move back with the family. I couldn't do that." Foreman stopped. This had never been easy for him to talk about. He'd always given a glib answer when asked why he wanted to be a doctor. Few people knew the truth. "She was diagnosed with early Alzheimer's ten years ago. I was twenty-three, in my first year of medical school. Marcus was working in a garage then, he was a mechanic. First year of med school was enough to know there was nothing I could do about it at home. My mom wouldn't have wanted me to drop out of school. I stayed. It's why I chose neurology. It's why I push myself so hard to the best I can. Maybe someday, if I can get good enough, I can beat it. It'll be too late for my Mom, but I could still do it for her. Marcus was furious. He said I was being selfish, thinking of myself and not of Mom. We just never had much to say to each other after that."

"Eric, I'm sorry," Nichelle told him. "And I think he's sorry too. Maybe he's just too stubborn to make the first move."

"Yeah, well," Foreman said, noncommittally. He stood up, and looked down at Nichelle. "Can I get you something? Coffee, or something to eat?"

"Maybe some snacks for when the kids wake up?" Nichelle asked. Foreman nodded. He glanced across the hall at his brother, who appeared to be sleeping, before walking down the hall to the vending machines.


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: I've barely gotten any reviews for the last couple of chapters. Please review, it makes me happy!

Chapter 15

Chase had volunteered to stay and make sure Marcus was okay during the night while they waited for their test results. He'd intended to go home early today, but Foreman couldn't stay to treat his own brother. House certainly wouldn't do it, and somehow Cameron still seemed a little off to him. Besides, he thought to himself, it's not as if he'd be doing this much longer.

Foreman thanked Chase for staying with Marcus, and asked him to call immediately if anything changed. He arranged for Nichelle and the kids to stay at a nearby hotel, so they wouldn't have to spend the night on the waiting area couches. He assured Nichelle that Chase would call her too, if anything should happen.

House, naturally, had spent most of the afternoon holed up in his office. This was nothing unusual, and since his team was a little more distracted than usual, he'd managed to avoid any questions about his leg all day. Until it was time to go home. Cameron had come into the conference room to gather her things, when she noticed his office lights were still on. She smiled and pushed through the glass door into his office. One look at his face and the smile faded. She stood silently and watched him limping across his balcony to the door, and stopping short when he noticed her standing there. His pained expression was not lost on her.

"How bad does it hurt?" she asked.

"Been worse," House replied. He picked up his bag and stuffed in his Ipod and Gameboy.

"But it's been better," Cameron pushed, but gently. House put his bag on his shoulder and limped, slowly, toward the door without answering. Cameron placed a hand on his arm to stop him. "Taking something?"

House turned, angry, but Cameron held up her hands in a defensive gesture before he could say anything.

"I meant, ibuprophen or maybe naproxen?" House nodded. "Not helping?"

"Not much." House acknowledged. It actually felt kind of good letting Cameron know his leg hurt. He hadn't realized how much it was weighing him down worrying about keeping it from everyone. And he knew that she understood what he was really worried about.

"Come on, you're coming home with me," Cameron said, taking his bag for him.

"Aren't we forward today?" House teased.

"Can't give it away if you don't put it out there," Cameron said with a dry tone, and House grinned. He liked it best when she mocked him with total seriousness.

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House sat in Cameron's tub, letting the hot water and Jacuzzi jets soothe his leg. He hadn't noticed the tub when he'd visited before, but he was grateful for it. Actually, it might be worth it to have one installed at his place. His leg actually did feel better. He wouldn't say it felt good, not like it did right after the treatment, but it certainly felt better than it had all day.

When they'd gotten to Cameron's apartment, she'd ordered him to the couch, where she proceeded to give his leg muscles a long, slow massage. He'd hinted several times about other sore areas she could rub for him, but she'd merely raised an eyebrow at him and continued in a very professional manner. When she was finished, she'd brought him to the bathroom and begun filling the tub. After a quick explanation of the controls for the Jacuzzi, she'd told him to stay in the water for at least a half an hour while she made dinner.

"House?" Cameron's voice called at the door. "You about ready to get out, dinner's almost done."

"You've already seen me naked, so there's no point being shy," House said to the door, standing up as he let the water out of the tub and turned of the jets. He reached for a towel to dry himself off, and heard Cameron laughing from the other side of the door.

"Yes, but I want to eat dinner while its still hot. Naked men tend to distract me," Cameron said. House shook his head, grinning. Minutes later, he emerged from the bathroom, dressed and running a towel over his hair. Whatever Cameron had made for dinner smelled great. He tossed his wet towel on the floor, and sat at the table. Cameron came in carrying a dish, frowning at the towel as she set the food on the table. House smirked; he knew it would drive her crazy.

Cameron sat, and took House's plate. She put a large serving of the lasagna on his plate, and then added a generous helping of salad next to it. House raised an eyebrow at the salad.

"It's green," House said, poking the lettuce with his fork.

"It's called a vegetable," Cameron explained slowly, as she served herself a much smaller portion of the salad and lasagna. "It's probably been years since you've seen one, but I promise you won't die if you eat it."

"But, mom, I don't want to. It's yucky!" House whined, and put on his best five-year-old boy pout. Cameron couldn't help but laugh.

"If you eat all your vegetables, I'll give you a treat," Cameron said, putting on a serious mom face and tone.

"It better not be cookies and milk," House complained. Cameron leaned close enough to whisper into House's ear. When she was done, she sat back and smiled sweetly before picking up her fork and taking a bite of her salad.

"That might even be worth eating a pickle," House joked, and took a bite of his salad as Cameron laughed.

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House and Cameron walked into the conference room the next morning to find Foreman sitting at the table with Chase, going over Marcus's chart. Chase found the two of them coming in together a little odd, but Foreman was too engrossed in the notes to notice. House smelled coffee, and made a face.

"I thought I warned you about touching the coffee pot," House said to Chase.

"Wilson made it," Chase replied, burying his head in the chart again. After the previous day's tie assault, Chase was trying to be extra careful not to annoy House in any way.

"Wilson? What was he doing in here?" House asked.

"Didn't ask. He mumbled something about not being able to get any coffee at home. I wasn't really listening," Chase answered, flipping a page in the medical tome he'd been looking through.

"Hmmm," House mused. "What's up with the patient?"

"It's not lupus, lead poisoning or melioidosis," Chase answered. "Still waiting for the typhoid results, but I don't think that's it."

"Not very likely," Cameron said. "Are these your notes?" she asked Chase, sliding the file toward her.

"Yeah, maybe a fresh set of eyes will see something. I know there's something in there that I'm forgetting about, but I can't think." He looked at House. "I'm going to catch a shower and change into some scrubs, I stink." House nodded his assent, and Chase got up and walked out of the conference room. Mere seconds later, he ran back into the room, shouting.

"Urinary incontinence!"

"Geez, Chase, the bathroom is just down the hall," House shot at him.

"Nichelle said Marcus wet the bed a couple of times. It's a symptom." Chase answered, throwing House a dirty look. House wrote the new symptom on the board and stared. House turned to Foreman, but before he could say anything, Foreman spoke.

"It could be Alzheimer's. There's a history," Foreman said, trying to keep the emotion out of his voice.

"Alzheimer's wouldn't account for most of the other symptoms," Cameron said slowly.

"No, but stress from another illness could exacerbate the condition," Foreman replied. "He needs to be tested."

House nodded to Cameron, who gave Foreman a sympathetic look before leaving to run the test. Chase left again to get his shower, leaving Foreman alone with House. Foreman put his head in his hands and leaned his elbows on the table.

"Why don't you go and ask your sister-in-law if he's had any personality changes lately? House suggested, remarkably free of sarcasm. Foreman stood up wearily and left to find Nichelle.

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"He's been a little short-tempered, but nothing really out of the ordinary. He's been sick for weeks, he's just tired and out of sorts," Nichelle told Foreman, almost defensively.

"Nichelle, I know you don't want to think about this now, but we have to know everything that's relevant if we're going to find out what's wrong with him," Foreman told her gently.

"Eric, I'm scared," Nichelle said, and began to cry softly. Foreman, looking somewhat uncomfortable, put an arm around her shoulders and told her it will be okay, although he knew no such thing. When her crying had slowed, he asked her again.

"Nichelle, please. It's important. Has he been acting differently lately? Even something small could be important."

"He hasn't wanted to watch any racing for a couple of weeks. He seems sort of, disinterested. You know how much he loves cars. And he really has been short-tempered," Nichelle told Foreman.

"Thanks, Nichelle," Foreman told her, and left to update the team.

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"Personality changes," Foreman announced to House and Chase, who were the only two in the room. "He's been short-tempered and losing interest in his favorite hobby."

House and Chase just looked at Foreman, but didn't respond. They'd both looked at the patient history after Foreman had gone to speak to Nichelle. They knew his mother had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's. It wasn't looking too good for Marcus.

"When the test results confirm it, you can talk to the family," House said to Foreman and went into his office.

"Foreman, I'm sorry," Chase said, and Foreman just nodded.

"I'm going to check on Marcus," Foreman said, and left to see his brother.

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Cameron snuck into House's office and out onto the balcony. She was waiting for the Alzheimer's test results to come in, but the lab was incredibly backed up. There had been a malfunction in one of the machines during the night, and all of the hospital's tests were behind. Cameron had been unable to even get near a machine to run the test herself. Seeing as she had nothing to do, her clinic hours not being until after lunch, she decided to sneak out for a cigarette before House got back.

She was standing on the balcony, and enjoying her moment of peace greatly, when Wilson stepped out from his office. They looked at each other, and Cameron grinned at him guiltily.

"You know those things will give you cancer," Wilson said to her, disapprovingly.

"She's got to keep you in a job, Jimmy," House's voice said from behind Cameron, and she jumped, and then blushed. "I thought you were quitting."

"I am," Cameron sighed. "They're just so…"

"Addictive?" House asked. "Hmm, can't imagine what that's like." He gave her a face, and she sighed, but crushed the cigarette on the wall.

"You knew he'd catch you," Wilson said, smugly.

"No, you were supposed to be keeping him busy," Cameron said with an accusatory tone.

"Uh, oh. Are you two conspiring behind my back? That could be trouble," House said lightly, and put a hand on Cameron's arm. "She's mine, you can't play with her," he told Wilson.

"You never were good at sharing," Wilson commented, and Cameron laughed. She rarely got to see House and Wilson together when they weren't working, and the easy banter between them made it clear how they'd remained friends all these years. She locked that bit of information away for future use. It might be helpful to her in maintaining her own relationship with the grumpiest man alive.

"So, couldn't get any coffee at home?" House asked, and Cameron and House both noticed Wilson stiffen a bit.

"Ran out," Wilson said simply, but looked pointedly at Cameron and then at House. Cameron understood; this was something he didn't want to talk about in front of her.

"I'll go check on those test results," she said to House, and walked toward the door to his office.

"Cuddy throw you out this morning?" House asked.

"She said the smell of the coffee made her sick," Wilson said, and looked at House. House smiled knowingly.

"How far along is she?" he asked.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Foreman stood outside Marcus's room once again. He wanted to talk to his brother; he wanted to say he was sorry about what happened between them, but his stubborn pride got in the way. Maybe Nichelle was right, and Marcus's own stubbornness was preventing him from taking the first step. Foreman steeled himself, and stepped inside the room.

"Dr. Cameron came in and took more blood. What are you testing me for now?" Marcus asked.

"Alzheimer's," Foreman said simply. Marcus let out a low whistle.

"So that's it, huh? I guess you'll be packing up and running off then, like last time," Marcus said bitterly.

"That's not fair. You know that's not what Mom wanted. She'd have been pissed as hell if I'd dropped out of school, and you know it," Foreman spoke calmly, although he could feel the anger building inside.

Marcus turned his head away, and Foreman prepared himself for the angry shouting and insults to follow. He was shocked to see tears on his brother's face when he turned back. He couldn't remember ever seeing his brother cry, not even when they'd been very young.

"I don't want to end up like Mom, Eric. She doesn't even know me when I go visit her. She can't even remember the kids from one time to the next. I don't my kids to have to do that," Marcus said, his voice choked from trying to hold in the tears. Foreman came to the side of the bed and took his brother's hand.

"We don't know that's what this is. And even if it is, it's early and there are always new treatments. We're not giving up," Foreman said, and squeezed Marcus's hand. Marcus nodded, and then looked away again. Foreman released his hand and stood to leave.

"Eric," Marcus said, without turning his head. "She'd be proud of you."

Foreman stood quietly for a few seconds, and then left.

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"She won't tell me anything," Wilson said, leaning against the wall separating the balconies.

"Have you asked her?" House asked, leaning on the opposite side of the wall, facing away from Wilson.

"Well, not exactly," Wilson replied. "I'm not sure I want to know."

"Gee, Wilson, usually you wait until after you've married them to walk out on them," House snarked. Wilson took this remark with his usual calm.

"True, but usually, they're not having other people's babies," Wilson retorted in his typical deadpan drawl.

"Run that by me one more time," House said, confused.

"We've only been together about six weeks," Wilson explained. "She had an IVF treatment not long before we …" Wilson waved his hands to fill in the blanks, "it could be the IVF worked. I may not be the father."

"Would that make a difference?" House asked.

Wilson stared at him. That was the real question, wasn't it? Should it matter if he wasn't the biological father? Did he really want to start a family with Lisa? They'd only just begun their relationship. Wasn't this too soon? Wilson ran his hand over his face, and then both hands through his hair.

"I don't know," he said finally.

House didn't reply. What was there to say? He knew what Wilson was thinking. And House couldn't answer any of those questions for him. This was something he and Cuddy would have to work out for themselves.

Chase poked his head out of the office door timidly. He hated to interrupt House and Wilson; they always made him feel like he'd stepped into an intimate moment. Of course, that was silly, they weren't a couple, but he couldn't help feel like an outsider when they were together.

"It's not typhoid," Chase said. House nodded. He'd known that already, how would Marcus have gotten typhoid? Alzheimer's was far more likely. "It's not Alzheimer's either."

House looked intrigued. He glanced at Wilson, who nodded his understanding, and House pushed off from the wall to go inside. A pain in his leg caused him to stumble slightly. House looked around quickly, but Chase had already gone back inside, and Wilson was already walking back into his office, his back to House. Glad no one had seen, House straightened and walked very slowly inside.

A/N: I hope people are still enjoying the story. Please R&R, the reviews make my day!!! Seriously!


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Cameron watched House walk/limp slowly into the conference room and sit in the corner chair. The limp was definitely more noticeable today. Apparently the Jacuzzi had been only a temporary fix. She sighed inwardly; she knew he would not want to talk about this, but he needed to go to physical therapy. And soon, before the pain became too much to tolerate without narcotic help. She debated saying something, but she realized he would not want an audience for this particular conversation, so she held her tongue.

House noticed her watching him and looking at his leg, and braced himself for a comment. She said nothing, and House was grateful. She was learning.

"Okay folks, we're back to square one. What do we know?" House asked.

"Fever, headaches, nausea and vomiting were the first symptoms," Chase said.

"Followed by abdominal and muscle pains, then a seizure," Cameron continued.

"And weight loss and some urinary incontinence," Chase finished.

"Wow, did you guys rehearse that?" House asked. "All you need is some back up dancers and you could hit Broadway." Cameron rolled her eyes and Chase groaned.

"Why are we discounting the hypertension?" Chase asked.

"Because of the family history, it's probably not related," Cameron answered.

"But we don't know that," Chase countered. "We should consider it might be a current symptom. I say polyarteritis nodosa."

"Nice," House said. "Fits everything, even the personality changes. But not the incontinence."

"Has he been checked for a UTI? An infection could cause the incontinence, and that's probably how he contracted the condition," Chase responded to House's inquiry with a confidence that made House and Cameron both take notice.

"Start him on cortico steroids and check him out for a UTI," House ordered. "Chase, nice job." Chase nodded and left without answering. Cameron lagged behind, wanting to talk to House alone.

"Going to start bawling over my leg?" House asked, sarcastically. He didn't want to talk about it.

"No, actually, I was going to suggest you stop being such a baby and do the damn physical therapy you know you need," Cameron said shortly.

House turned and looked at her in surprise. This wasn't the reaction he'd expected. Either he was slipping, or she really was learning how best to deal with him.

"Ooh, tough love. How after-school special," he snarked at her, and walked into his office, hoping to be alone.

"What's the problem, can't handle the physio?"

"It doesn't work."

"And you know that because?"

"Done it."

"Hmm. If I recall correctly from what Wilson told me, you went to one session, made the therapist cry and then walked out. Hardly what I'd call your best effort," Cameron said lightly, but with a purpose. She'd had an inspiration. House did not enjoy being told he'd given up on something because it was too hard for him. It was like admitting defeat, and that was not House.

"I bet you couldn't handle the real thing," Cameron said, goading him now. "Too old, maybe?" The look on his face made her afraid she'd gone too far, but she wasn't about to back down.

"Like you gave quitting smoking your best effort?" House retorted.

"Okay, fine. I'll quit smoking if you'll go to physio," Cameron offered. House raised an eyebrow.

"How long?" House asked, calculating.

"Three months," Cameron said. She'd secretly done a little investigating about this earlier, while waiting for the lab results on Foreman's brother. Even if his pain returned fully, and he was exactly where he'd been before the ketamine treatment, the physical therapy could help him. Three months was the minimum all the therapists she'd talked to had recommended.

"And if I make it through the three months?" House asked.

"How about a thousand dollars?" Cameron suggested. House stared her down. She wasn't kidding. "But, if you don't, I don't want your money." House paled. What did she want? Marriage, living together? "If you don't make it, I'm going to tell everyone in the hospital about your secret stash of country music, and how you seem to have a man-crush on Toby Keith."

A look of real horror and panic passed over House's face for a mere instant. Recovering, he remembered that he, too, had personal information he could use.

"Okay. If you can go three months without smoking, it's a thousand dollars. But if you don't, I'm telling everyone I know that your middle name is Henrietta," House said, grinning with the knowledge she hated that name.

"Deal," Cameron said, and extended her hand. House felt somehow that was a little too easy. He shook her hand, and she turned to leave. At the door, she turned back to him and smiled.

"I left a card on your desk, you have an appointment in physio at 10 tomorrow morning. Her name is Dianna, and she doesn't seem like the type who cries easily. See you for dinner." After giving him another self-satisfied smile, she walked off down the hall.

House looked on his desk, and did indeed see an appointment card on his desk, confirming his 10am physio appointment. She'd set him up. He looked from the card to the door and back again, before allowing himself a smirk. Yup, definitely learning, he thought.

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Chase found Foreman outside Marcus's room, watching as David and Johnna climbed into bed with their dad and snuggled into his sides. Nichelle stood at the foot of the bed, ready to remove the children if Marcus was in pain or uncomfortable. Foreman smiled sadly. He wanted that sort of life. Sighing, he entered the room to tell them the goods news.

"It's not Alzheimer's," Foreman said, without preamble. Marcus was a cut to the chase kind of guy.

"Oh, thank God," Nichelle cried, tears slipping down her cheeks. David looked concerned, but he seemed to understand his mother was crying happy tears.

"You have polyarteritis nodosa," Foreman explained. "It's basically a swelling of the blood vessels, it can be a complication of a virus. We think you had a urinary tract infection. That's what was causing you the stomach pains and making you sick. Then the virus caused the vascular problems. You'll have to start a steroid treatment, and you'll probably have to spend a few more days here, but you'll be okay."

Nichelle stepped around the bed and kissed Foreman on the cheek before pulling him into a tight hug. Foreman hesitated, but then hugged her back. It felt good to be a part of a family. Marcus smiled at him, and Foreman returned the gesture. It would take some time, but maybe he and his brother could finally start making amends.

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House sat on the couch in Cuddy's office, waiting. She'd paged him to meet her here, and then had left before he'd arrived. Her new secretary, a girl House swore could be no older than twelve, had told him to wait inside. He wondered if this had anything to do with Wilson, and hoped desperately she wasn't going to ask him for relationship advice. My God, he thought to himself, I can barely keep myself out of the doghouse for a day at a time, how could I possibly help anybody else?

Cuddy entered the room, and House noted her pallor. She walked quickly behind her desk and sat down, closed her eyes and took several deep breaths.

"I hear ginger snaps are good for morning sickness," House told her, and Cuddy's eyes flew open.

"How did you know?" she asked, not even bothering to deny it.

"I know everything," House said simply. He wasn't about to get in the middle of whatever was going on between her and Wilson.

"He knows, doesn't he?" Cuddy asked resignedly. She already knew the answer. Of course, he knew; he was a doctor and the signs were pretty hard to miss. House merely nodded. Cuddy nodded back at him. She knew she needed to talk to Wilson, but wasn't really sure what to say. She shook her head clear of these thoughts; she needed to sort this out and she wasn't going to do it with House staring at her.

"So, Dr. House," Cuddy said, putting on her 'Dean of Medicine' voice, "the hospital board has reviewed your treatment records, and are favorably impressed. However, the incident with Dr. Cameron caused some concerns that the board is not entirely convinced have been resolved."

House looked at Cuddy with disgust, and a slowly growing anger. She seemed to know what he was thinking without his having to say it. He opened his mouth, and Cuddy could see by his expression he was about to blow. While she thought it might be fun to see House get all flustered about his new relationship with the immunologist, she decided she was really to tired to listen to his tirade.

"The other incident with Dr. Cameron, when you had the polio case," Cuddy explained gently. House's face fell. Of course that would be what they were concerned about. And they weren't wrong. He tried very hard not to think about hitting Cameron; he didn't exactly appreciate the board's reminder.

"The board would like, and when I say they'd like I mean they will require, that you continue to see Dr. Quigley for another six months. During that time, you will submit to a drug test on a monthly basis. At the end of the six month period, if all goes well, you'll be free and clear," Cuddy hoped he'd be reasonable at least about this.

"Fine," House agreed quickly. Drug tests were no problem. And now that he had a girlfriend, he cringed a little inside, he could probably use Quig for some advice.

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House sat at the piano, playing a quiet, classical piece. He was feeling a bit nervous about his physio appointment in the morning, and the music helped him relax. His leg hurt, but it had hurt worse before. He knew the physio would help, but he also knew it would hurt like hell while he was doing it. He wouldn't have the Vicodin to fall back on this time, and he was afraid.

He heard a knocking on the door, and he called a 'come in' to the person on the other side. He'd been expecting Cameron, so he was surprised to see Wilson come through the door. House looked at his watch, where was Cameron anyway?

"I heard you're staring physio tomorrow," Wilson said by way of a hello. House rolled his eyes.

"And how did you hear that?" House asked, as if he didn't know. Cameron and Wilson had become quite chummy of late, and House feared this would not bode well for him. There were quite a few things he would prefer Cameron not know about him, and Wilson wasn't exactly the greatest at keeping a secret.

"Not how you think," Wilson replied. "A young physical therapist named Dianna stopped by my office today, and asked me if you were really as scary as she'd heard. I, of course, played you up to be a complete ogre." Wilson eyes twinkled.

"Scare her off?" House asked, almost hopefully.

"No," Wilson replied, with evident glee. "In fact, she was pleased. She said she'd been hoping for a really challenging case since she got to the hospital, and it looks like you're going to be it." Wilson was really enjoying this. He knew House didn't want to do the physio, but he also knew he needed it. He'd heard about the bet with Cameron, of course, but just for good measure. "She told me the rest of the therapists are already taking bets on how long before you make her cry." House looked unimpressed, he'd expected that. "They're also placing bets on how soon you'll quit." Wilson just let that hang there.

"What are the odds of me making it through the whole three months?"

"I believe right now it's five to one against," Wilson said, trying with all his might to keep his voice level. In fact, it had been Wilson, Cameron and Cuddy who'd offered the five to one odds. And they would gladly pay it all out if it meant House finished the three months. House didn't reply, just tucked the info into the back of his mind. He'd have to see a nurse about placing a bet.

"So, not home with the new mommy tonight?" House asked. Wilson made a face.

"She wants to be alone," Wilson said. "Probably trying to decide how to tell me the baby she won't admit she's carrying may not be mine. Doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, I'll admit." He tried to act as though he didn't care, but of course he did. He loved children, and had always wanted a child of his own. Now the idea that this child, who he already loved, wasn't his made his stomach sour.

A knock at the door saved House from having to make a caring comment. He shouted out another 'come in', and this time Cameron entered. Her eyes were red and puffy, tears still drying on her cheeks. She looked at Wilson, and nearly turned around and left. Wilson looked at House with a question, but House had no answer. He had no idea why Cameron was crying this time. Wilson stood to leave, placing a quick kiss on Cameron's cheek as he slipped out the door.

"Sorry I'm late," Cameron said, taking off her coat and hanging it on the rack beside the door. "You hungry?" she asked over her shoulder on her way past House and into the kitchen. House sat, unsure of what to do. Usually when Cameron was crying he'd torment her until she told him what was wrong or told him to take a flying leap. That approach didn't seem quite the thing for a boyfriend, he hated that term, so he was left uncertain.

Before he was forced to make a decision in favor of his many options, Cameron came back into the living room and sat on the couch next to him. She seemed calm enough, so House put his arm around her shoulders. Maybe a comforting touch was all she was really looking for.

"Can I ask you something?" Cameron said.

"Sure," House answered slowly. He held his breath, waiting for her to begin probing him about all the deep, dark secrets of his past.

"Are you going to keep seeing Dr. Quigley?" Cameron asked, squirming on the couch so she was facing him.

"For the next six months," House confirmed. "The board."

Cameron nodded, and fell quiet. House waited. That had certainly been out of nowhere, and it would be followed up with something else.

"Do you trust him?" Cameron asked, looking into his eyes.

"Yeah," House answered. He waited for her next question.

"Do you think he could recommend someone for me?"

"You mean, a shrink?" House asked, confused.

"No, a hair stylist. Of course, a shrink," Cameron retorted.

"Why do you need a shrink?" House asked bluntly. Subtly wasn't really his style, and he was worried that only a week into their new relationship, she was seeking mental help.

"I heard one of the nurses say that anybody who liked you needed their head examined, and it occurred to me she might be right," Cameron quipped. House smirked. "This whole baby thing; I haven't thought about it in a really long time. And now, I just want someone to talk to about it. Maybe finally get over it." Cameron shrugged. She was intentionally keeping her voice light and free of emotion.

"I'll take care of it," House told her, and she nodded her thanks. She snuggled into his side and sighed. House tightened his grip around her, and wished it was something he could fix for her.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

House and Cameron arrived at work together the following morning. They'd made an unspoken decision not to deny that they were together. So far, only Wilson, and by association Cuddy, knew for certain. House and Cameron knew Foreman had strong suspicions, and Chase? Well, Chase would figure it out eventually.

House and Cameron parted when they reached the diagnostics area; House entered his office and Cameron entered the conference room. After hanging her coat and depositing her bag at the desk, she began making a pot of coffee. Neither Foreman nor Chase had arrived, so the offices were eerily quiet. And yet, Cameron didn't hear House come in the room behind her. She remained unaware of his presence until she felt the hem of her skirt lifting above the back of her knees. She turned sharply, and caught the wicked grin on House's face as he let the tip of his cane drop to the floor.

He'd taken the cane out of the closet this morning. Cameron had watched him from the bedroom, sensing that this was just one more thing he wouldn't want to talk about. He'd stood before the closet for quite some time, simply staring at the door. Cameron watched him first out of curiosity. Then he'd opened the closet door and stared even longer at its contents. Cameron's curiosity was definitely peaked, for she had no idea what he was keeping in there that could hold his attention for so long. Finally, he had reached into the closet and pulled the cane out. He swung the closet door shut and stared at the cane in his hand for a few agonizing moments before dusting off the top and gripping the familiar wood with his right hand.

Cameron had jumped back into the bed, praying that he hadn't seen her watching him. She knew he would be angry, and she wanted to avoid a fight. He'd limped, thumped back into the bedroom to get dressed, and she had gotten up and gone to the bathroom. When she came back, the bedroom was empty. She had dressed quickly, and then found him in the kitchen, making toast. She took a slice; kissed him on the cheek, and poured a cup of the coffee she'd prepared the night before. He didn't look at her, but she could sense his relief that she didn't pester him with questions about his leg. It hurt; they both knew it. Talking about it wouldn't make the hurt go away.

The scene played out in Cameron's mind in a few seconds. She gave House her evil death glare, and turned back to the coffee pot. House hooked the cane's handle around her waist and pulled her back into his arms. She smirked at him over her shoulder.

"House, people can see us," Cameron admonished.

"Don't care," House replied, burying his head in her neck and kissing her lightly. Cameron shivered; his kisses and the slight scraping of his stubble had never yet failed to get that response.

"House," Cameron said in a warning tone. She didn't mind people at the hospital knowing about them, but that didn't mean she wanted to give them a free show. House sighed in frustration, but relented. He was sort of hoping to get an audience for the House/Cameron show. Anything to take the heat off him using his cane.

Foreman came in first, just as the coffee finished brewing. He took note of House's cane, but seeing as House was standing really close to the coffee pot and Foreman really needed some caffeine, he decided not to comment. Cameron poured House's coffee first, and then poured a cup for herself. House limped back into his office with his coffee, while Foreman poured himself a cup. He gave Cameron a questioning glance, and Cameron shook her head almost imperceptibly, indicating to Foreman not to bring it up.

Chase strolled in last, and went greedily to the coffee pot. He flinched at Foreman's good morning, and Cameron grinned. He was hung-over, again. She liked Chase, she really did, but she just couldn't understand why he did this to himself over and over. And of all days, when House was sure to be in a foul mood, he was once again making himself the perfect target.

House came back into the conference room for a coffee refill. He'd been up since 3am, the only reason Cameron was able to get him to work on time, and he needed the caffeine. Chase took one look at the cane and gasped, audibly. House tensed, and waited for it.

"You're using the cane," Chase said, predictably. Foreman and Cameron both let their eyes fall closed in disbelief and pity. They prepared themselves for the onslaught.

"Am not," House retorted, petulantly. Chase opened his mouth to say something else, and Foreman kicked him under the table. Chase jumped, and gave Foreman a bewildered look. House held his red mug out in front of him, and Cameron took it to refill. On another day she might have given him lip about not being his maid, but not today. If she could only get him his coffee quickly enough, he might go back to his office before Chase found himself impaled by the cane.

Cameron handed him the coffee, and he let his eyes lock with hers. He gave her a silent thank you, and she nodded. House took his second cup of coffee and limped back into his office. Foreman and Cameron had barely finished breathing their sighs of relief when House's voice thundered at them from his office.

"CHASE!"

Chase hung his head. He knew what this was about, and he couldn't believe his bad luck that today was the day House had finally needed to take out his cane. He stood up slowly, getting a look of sympathy from Cameron and an I-told-you-so look from Foreman. He had a feeling that, had they know the real reason House was screaming at him, the looks might have been fear instead.

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"What is this?" House asked coldly, holding up a folder with several sheets of paper inside.

"A file?" Chase asked. House glared at him.

"This is your fellowship renewal application," House told Chase. Chase didn't reply; he stared at House. "You turned it down."

"Yeah," Chase answered shortly. House gave Chase a look. "Dr. Hernandez in the NICU decided she wasn't coming back from her maternity leave. The NICU needed an intensivist and Cuddy offered to it me."

"Cuddy wouldn't have offered it to you unless she knew you were looking," House said, slowly, piecing things together. "Which means you must have given her these forms weeks ago, while I was in rehab."

"Just after you came back, actually," Chase replied. He hadn't wanted to talk to House about this. "Look, I just don't feel like I'm getting anything out of this anymore. The patients are horrible, the hours are too long and you're…" he let his voice trail off. He really did have a hard time dealing with the patients, and he hated the nights spent here alone. But mostly, he just couldn't put up with House and his mind games and torture anymore.

"I'm what?" House asked. He didn't want Chase to leave, but more importantly, he couldn't let Chase leave until he'd learned his last lesson.

"You don't take me seriously. You disregard everything I say, even when I'm right. I gave up fighting for my diagnosis because it didn't even matter if I stood up to you or not, you still disregard my opinion. I don't have to work for someone who doesn't respect me. I know I'm a good doctor, and you can't beat it out of me." Chase was flushed, but looked at House triumphantly.

House looked at Chase thoughtfully. This had been the one thing Chase had been missing. For the past three years, he had taken all of House's abuse. The insults, the screaming, the cursing and even the physical assaults. He'd always spoken up for his diagnosis, but never for himself. Even when Vogler was here, and threatened their jobs, Chase hadn't stood up for himself. He had gone to Vogler behind House's back. Now he had finally taken a stand for himself, and House was ready to let him move on.

"Okay," House said. He signed the form, and handed it to Chase. "Good luck."

"That's it?" Chase said, staring at the file in amazement. "Just 'good luck'?"

"I only cry in private," House snarked. "Besides, I still have you for two weeks. You like bedpan duty, right?" House flashed him an evil grin and stepped into the conference room.

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"I can't believe you're leaving," Cameron said to Chase. She, Chase and Foreman were having lunch together in the cafeteria, something they hadn't done in months. Chase shrugged.

"Finally had enough of House?" Foreman asked, wiping egg salad from his mouth.

"I just needed a change, that's all. I mean, it's not like we can stay with him forever, right?" He turned to Cameron for support. Cameron just looked back at him. It had never crossed her mind not to renew her fellowship. In fact, she'd already filled out the paperwork, even though her own renewal wouldn't be up for another six months.

"Well, I already know I won't be renewing my fellowship when it comes up next year," Foreman said. "I came here to learn, and I have. Staying just to stay is kind of sad, isn't it?"

Cameron stiffened at that last comment. Chase and Foreman were discussing Chase's new position, but Cameron wasn't listening. Was she sad for staying with House? Was she sacrificing an opportunity for her career just to keep working for him? She pushed these thoughts to the back of her mind. It was six months away; she had plenty of time to obsess over it.

"So, Cameron, are you still going to have time to have lunch with an old colleague once I'm just a lowly NICU guy?" Chase teased. Cameron smiled at him. She was going to miss seeing Chase every day.

"As long as you're paying," she quipped, and Foreman's eyebrows shut up in surprise. He looked at Cameron; she didn't even seem to realize how much like House she sounded. He put down his sandwich and really looked at her. His mind ran over the clues he'd noticed over the past couple of weeks. He grinned.

"So how long have you and House been sleeping together?" Foreman asked casually. Cameron turned and looked at Foreman slowly. Chase was choking on his chip, but Cameron didn't seem to notice. Cameron and House had sort of decided not to hide it from people, but she hadn't been prepared for someone to just ask her outright. She didn't know what to say. She could feel a blush begin creeping up her neck and into her cheeks, which of course would only make her look guiltier if she tried to deny it.

"Since I got back from rehab," House's voice said from behind her, and all three of them jumped. None of them had heard him approaching. "Is that a problem?" He stared at Foreman hard.

"Nope, no problem," Foreman looked at his watch. "I'm due in the clinic. See you guys later." Foreman grabbed his tray and dumped the rest of his lunch in the trash as he beat a hasty retreat out of the cafeteria.

Chase looked at Cameron and House, unsure of what to do. He picked up his tray and moved to another table, joining a NICU nurse he would be working with. House sat in Foreman's vacant seat and starting stealing bits of chicken from Cameron's salad.

"Well, that went well, don't you think?" House teased. Cameron just rolled her eyes, stabbing him with her plastic fork before he ate her entire lunch.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

House limped arrogantly into the physio department and stood just inside the doorway.

"Dianna!" House shouted at the top of his lungs. All of the patients and therapists turned to stare at him except one. She'd seen him coming down the hall, god bless glass walls, and had prepared herself for a theatrical entrance. Dianna finished noting the chart she held in her hands, placed it slowly in the tray beside the administration desk and then walked to where House stood.

"Good morning, Gregory. I see you're here only ten minutes late, you must be anxious to get started. Let's start on the stationary bike today, shall we?" Dianna kept her voice light, but firm. She wasn't going to take any crap from him, not on day one.

House looked her up and down, sizing up his adversary and trying to decide on the best way to get the better of her. She was a tiny woman, barely over five feet. He literally towered over her. She was thin, but muscular. She obviously took physical fitness seriously. She had short, red hair and fair skin, with a smattering of freckles across her nose. House guessed her age to be mid-thirties, just a few years older than Cameron.

"I don't do bikes, unless they have an engine," House told her.

"Well, then, lucky for you this one does have an engine," she told House, carefully kicking the shin of his good leg. "You're it."

House groaned. Did she really think that would work? Amateur, he thought.

"I'm feeling like 'the little engine that couldn't' today. Couldn't we start with something else?" House was just trying to push her buttons. His appointment had been at 10am; it was now already 10:15. He only had until 10:50, and then he was done for the day. The longer he wasted screwing with her, the less time to actually work.

"Sure, we could start with you paying up on the bets you're going to lose when I tell everyone you wouldn't get on the bike," Dianna said quickly. She'd been well warned, not only by Dr. Wilson, but also Dr. Cameron and Dr. Cuddy. In fact, since yesterday, she'd felt almost as if she was being briefed to go into battle. Perhaps this wasn't far from the truth.

House glared at her. Well, so much for stalling. He sat on the stationary bike, and then looked at Dianna. She adjusted the bike to the easiest setting for his first day, and glancing at the clock, set the timer for 50 minutes.

"Uh, Dianna sweetheart, I think you're having a blonde moment. 50 minutes means we won't be done until after 11. I won't have time to finish," House said, looking pleased.

"Nonsense, Gregory. I don't have another appointment until noon. I anticipated there might be a, delay, in getting you started today. Off you go," she smiled sweetly at him, but her eyes told him she wasn't fooling around.

House pouted, but began pedaling. After about ten minutes, he paused to remove his sport coat and button down shirt. He resumed pedaling, but was glancing at Dianna from time to time. She spent the entire session watching him. When his 50 minutes were finally up, House was sweating and sore. But, remarkably, his leg felt no worse than when he had started.

"Well done, Gregory," Dianna said. "I'll expect to see you Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10am, without exception. You may want to bring in something more comfortable to wear, we do have a locker area where you could change," Dianna indicated a doorway in the back of the physio department. "There are showers there too, in case you don't want to smell the rest of the day. We'll stick to the bike for the next few weeks, it's good exercise but it won't put any weight on your leg while you build up some muscle tone."

House grumbled at the appointments twice a week. Despite what most people thought, he did actually bathe, and was glad he'd be able to do so before returning to work. He glanced at Dianna again, as she was noting some things in his chart. She seemed like the business-like type, probably not one to want to talk. He'd see if maybe he couldn't push her buttons a bit better next week.

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House stepped into his office, but had barely made it to his desk when Cuddy entered from behind him.

"House, clinic." She turned and marched off without waiting for a reply. House stepped into the hall and started to yell something to her, but thought it might not be a good idea to piss off a hormonal Cuddy. He went to the clinic as ordered.

His first patient was waiting in Exam Room 1. House didn't even glance at the chart before walking into the room. He took one look at the elderly woman sitting on the exam table and smiled.

"Georgia," House said. "I haven't seen you in a while. What brings you here today?"

"Well, Dr. House, I've been feeling a bit run down lately. Just overly tired, and out of sorts. I know it's a little early in the season, but I'm afraid maybe my flu shot didn't work," Georgia said, and smiled sweetly at House.

House examined her quickly, and wrote a few notes in the chart. He smiled as he noticed her watching him closely.

"It's not the flu, just a cold. Stay in bed and get some rest. Rent a few Ashton Kutcher movies, they'll perk you right up," House grinned at her.

"Oh, I've discovered this actor, his name is Hugh Laurie. He's just lovely. Such pretty blue eyes, he has. And he's British," Georgia practically squealed, as though Brits were known for being hot. "He does resemble you a bit, Dr. House," Georgia drawled, and batted her eyelashes coquettishly. House squirmed, but had a sudden inspiration.

"Have you seen 'Girl from Rio'? Hugh Laurie stars in that; my girlfriend loves that movie," House told her, pointedly.

"Oh, your girlfriend. Well, maybe I'll rent that. Thank you, Dr. House." Georgia looked a bit disappointed, and House silently thanked Cameron for her obsession with the British actor. He smiled at Georgia, and slipped out of the room. He leaned against the door and sighed, what ever happened to a good old toy up the nose?

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House opened the door to Wilson's office and walked in without knocking. Wilson glanced up, but only long enough to confirm it was House, and not Cuddy, who had come in unannounced. House flung himself on the couch, let out a deep sigh, and waited for Wilson to ask him what was wrong.

Wilson, who was having a particularly bad day, didn't want to talk to House. He'd gotten bad results on a very young patient late the day before, and had spent a good part of the morning talking to her and her parents. He had a mountain of paperwork he needed to complete for another patient who was going to be entering a clinical trial for a new chemotherapy treatment. And, above all else, Cuddy still hadn't said anything about a baby. In fact, she was now avoiding him completely.

Wilson knew he had a bad reputation as far as relationships went. And it certainly wasn't undeserved. House was right; it was his pathology. He needed people who needed him. Why else become an oncologist? Nobody needs a doctor more than a patient with a potentially fatal disease? Why three failed marriages? Why remain friends with House for all those years?

House, quickly growing impatient with Wilson ignoring him, lifted his cane and began pushing the items on Wilson's desk around. Finally, House having tipped over a small potted plant and spilling the soil over most of the desk, Wilson looked up, grateful he'd forgotten to water the plant that day.

"You know, some people find it equally effective to announce their presence by saying 'hello' to the other occupants of a room," Wilson said dryly, gingerly lifting the papers on his desk to allow the soil to slide off.

"Yes, but my way is more fun," House replied. He sat up on the couch and began tapping his cane on the floor between his legs. Wilson understood this to mean he wanted to talk about something, and Wilson was to ask him.

"What?" Wilson asked shortly. Just because House needed to talk, didn't mean Wilson had to play the game they normally played.

"Chase is leaving," House said, his eyes never leaving the cane.

"Leaving the hospital? Leaving the state? Leaving his heart in San Francisco?" Wilson asked. He'd heard about this already from Cuddy, and he'd been waiting for House to find out. He was always upset when one of his fellows left. Partly because it meant he'd have to interview, partly because it meant adjusting to a new person, but also because he usually ended up liking them. Besides Wilson, the fellows were the closest thing House had to friends, and he was rarely glad to see one of them go.

"Leaving the department," House scowled. "He's taking an attending position in the NICU."

"When should we start interviewing?" Wilson asked.

"Soon," House answered, looking despaired. "He's leaving in two weeks."

Wilson nodded. He knew they'd have to start interviewing immediately. It had taken a month to find Cameron and nearly three to find Foreman when those spots had become available. This was the last thing Wilson needed right now.

There was a knock at the door, and Cuddy entered. Wilson looked at her, surprised, and Cuddy looked at House with clear annoyance. House grinned.

"She's pregnant, he might not be the daddy. Be nice," he said and walked out, shutting the door behind him.

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Foreman stepped out of Marcus' room and smiled. Things weren't wonderful between he and his brother, but they were definitely improving. Nichelle helped, of course. She was a natural peacemaker. Foreman hadn't been at all surprised to learn she was a school guidance counselor. And Foreman was quickly falling in love with his niece and nephew. Johnna, so named after Nicelle's father, was a sweet little girl whose biggest aspiration at the moment was to have a horse when she grew up. David, named after Foreman's father, was a very bright boy. He wanted to be a paleontologist when grew up. According to Marcus and Nichelle, he had been obsessed with dinosaurs from the age of two, when they had taken him to the Natural History Museum to see the T-Rex.

Foreman went to the conference room and gathered his things. He reflected to himself on his way home about how nice it was to spend time with Marcus and his family. He began to wonder if maybe he wasn't feeling a little jealous of his brother. He dated frequently, but had yet to find anyone he was willing to devote himself to. He'd always been so concerned about his career that the amount of time it takes to sustain a relationship and raise a family had seemed like a burden. Now he wasn't so sure.

When Foreman arrived at home, he skipped the hour he normally spent reading his medical journals before dinner. Instead, he did something he hadn't done in a while. He called his dad to say hi.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Wilson and Cuddy stared at each other, growing increasingly uncomfortable as the silence between them stretched out. Wilson was fuming, how could House be so, so…House! Damn him. He knew how important Lisa was to him, and he was still so … House!

Cuddy was raging. House! The man was a menace. How on earth had she let him get away with this sort of … dammit House! He knew how important this baby was to her, and Jimmy and he was still so….House!

"He, he is just such a …." Wilson stuttered, too angry to really even finish his thought.

"He's House," Cuddy sighed, and sank into the couch, eyes closed. She was just too tired to maintain her angry for any amount of time.

"Are you okay?" Wilson asked, his voice laced with concern. Cuddy opened her eyes and looked at Wilson. Her normally tense expression relaxed, as it always did when she met his warm, welcoming gaze.

"Jimmy, I'm too old for this," Cuddy whined, and Wilson laughed. She raised an eyebrow at him; this was not the sympathetic response she had been looking for.

"Sorry, I just don't think I've ever heard you whine before. It's cute." Wilson stepped around his desk and sat beside her on the couch, pulling her into his arms. He leaned back into the couch, and pulled her back a well, her back resting on his chest, her head on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," Cuddy said quietly.

"It's okay," Wilson answered. He rubbed her arms lightly, and kissed the top of her head.

"No, it's not. Jimmy, I would never have had that last IVF treatment if I'd known that you and I were going to be together." Cuddy laced her fingers with Wilson's, and brought his hand to her mouth for a kiss.

"Lisa," Wilson began, but she interrupted him. Sitting up, she turned to face him.

"No. I wanted a baby, but that's not all. I want a family. I want you."

"Well," Wilson said, "you do have a reputation for getting what you want." He smiled, boyish and seductive at once. He reached for her, and kissed her softly. "So we'll work it out."

"We can have amnio done, and find out if you want," Cuddy told him. She wasn't sure that was the best idea, but he deserved to know whether the baby was his.

"No," Wilson said firmly, and Cuddy tensed. "I don't care. We may dysfunctional, but we're going to be a family, genetics be damned."

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Chase found Cameron in the lab, as usual. She was running strep tests for the clinic. Chase smirked, that was just one more thing he was not going to miss about working for House. Being an attending in the NICU meant less clinic duty. And not working for House meant no more covering his clinic duty.

"Hey Cam," Chase said, taking the stool next to her. She was the one he would miss.

"Chase," Cameron responded. She liked Chase, but since that night between them, she'd never been entirely comfortable being alone with him. Not that you were really alone in the hospital, but still. It always forced her to remember the one time they had really been alone together, and it was not a pleasant memory. Their dynamic was much better when someone else was with them, Foreman, House, even a patient. It took the intimacy out of it.

"Cameron, is it always going to be like this?" Chase asked.

"What?"

"This, us, you and me. Is it always going to be so, awkward?" Chase explained. "I want to be your friend, but if we can't hand out together without you getting all..."

"Clenched?" Cameron offered, smirking.

"Ookay. All I'm saying is, I'm not like Foreman. I want to stay friends with you even though we're not working together. But how are we going to do that if you can't relax around me?"

Cameron sighed. Things never had been quite the same between them, but that was as much her fault was it was his. She'd never let him talk to her about it, not since the morning after. Maybe it was time to finally clear the air.

"Chase, it's not just you. I was embarrassed. It's, it's personal and a long story and it's not all about you. I'd like to stay friends, too. We'll just have to work on it." Cameron shrugged. It was the best she could do.

"I'll take it," Chase said, and flashed her a huge grin. Cameron smiled in return; he really was too cute. "So, you and House?"

"Me and House," Cameron agreed.

"Think it'll work out?" Chase asked. He wasn't trying to make her angry. In fact, he'd seen her reaction when questioned her about House plenty of times. He just wanted to make sure she was okay.

"I don't know," Cameron said. "But I do know, if I don't try, I'd regret it."

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The days dragged on as House & Co. were without a case. In desperation to cure his boredom, House had completed two weeks worth of clinic hours in two days. That left him with only today to get through before the weekend. He'd been to two more physio appointments, both torturous and frustrating. Torturous because, well, they hurt; frustrating because no matter what he said, he couldn't ruffle Dianna. It was beginning to make him think he'd lost his touch.

Today would be awful, but at least not boring. He had an appointment with Quig in the morning, and fellowship applicants to interview all afternoon. Wilson had talked things out with Cuddy, and was back to his usual self. This meant an entire afternoon of interviews, partly because Wilson knew it would take days, but mostly to annoy him. Wilson knew he hated interviewing.

He limped into the conference room and got himself a cup of coffee. Chase was doing clinic duty, House grinned. Chase was doing his clinic duty. With what he'd one in the past two days, and what he was forcing on Chase, he'd be caught up on clinic duty for a month. Foreman was in neurology, consulting and Cameron was in the lab, helping out.

House took his coffee to his office, and checked the time. With only ten minutes until his appointment, he grabbed his cane from beside the desk and limped down the hall.

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"Lucy, I'm home!" House announced himself in Quig's office. Quig chuckled, amused. He was glad House was back; he had hoped the board would require him to continue therapy. He knew House would never do it on his own, but he still needed some work.

"Sucks about the leg," Quig told him.

"Yeah," House replied. He sat in the brown leather chair and stretched out, making himself comfortable.

"How are you doing with the pain?" Quig asked.

"It hurts," House said simply.

"Got that. I meant, how are you doing without the drugs?"

"Lots of sex," House quipped. "Takes my mind off the pain."

"Yes, I heard a rumor about you and Dr. Cameron," Quig replied.

"You shouldn't believe everything you hear," House said, but his eyes did not meet Quig's. Quig sat silently. House fidgeted. "Cameron wants to know if you could recommend a therapist for her."

"Sure," Quig said easily. "And she just happened to mention this to you because?"

House rolled his eyes, exasperated. Quig was almost as bad as Wilson. Well, at least Quig wouldn't squeal like a little girl.

"Fine, we're together. Do we have to talk about it?"

"Nope. I'll give you a couple of names for Dr. Cameron. They're all good. She should make an appointment with each of them and find someone she's really comfortable with," Quig said. House nodded. "So, let's get started on a plan."

"A plan? You mean like on the A-Team?" House asked. "Okay, but I get to be Hannibal."

"A plan for what you're going to do when your leg really starts to hurt and you want the drugs," Quig replied. "And, my office, I get to be Hannibal. You're the patient, you can be Murdock."


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Wilson leaned against the doorway of Cuddy's office, watching her work. He smiled as he noticed her continually trying to tuck one stray strand of hair back from tickling her face. Giving up in frustration, Cuddy stood up to go the ladies room and fix her hair. She was startled to see Wilson in the doorway, as she hadn't heard him approaching.

"How long have you been standing there?" Cuddy asked him.

"Long enough to know you just give up and let your hair down," Wilson replied. "You're cute when you're frustrated."

"James, someone will hear you," Cuddy reprimanded him.

"And so what if they did?" Wilson challenged. "I've been dying to tell people for weeks. You only wanted to wait until you could talk to House. You did, and you still don't want people to know. Did he say something to scare you off?"

"Of course not. It's just; I've never let anyone… I'm the boss, James. I'm supposed to be in control, on top of everything. If people start knowing stuff about my personal life, they'll see me as…"

"Human?" Wilson interrupted. "Not to fight that immutable logic, but have you considered your personal life will be pretty obvious when you start showing in a few months? Oh, and by the way, did you think there wouldn't be rumors about you being unmarried and pregnant?"

Cuddy looked a little surprised. She hadn't counted on that. Naturally, she'd realized that everyone would know she was pregnant, but it hadn't occurred to her that she might be questioned about it. Actually, nobody but House would have questioned her on it. The rest of the staff would simply have gossiped about it behind her back. That was even worse.

"I hadn't really given it a lot of thought," she admitted. "How bad do you think the rumors would be?"

"About half the staff would think the baby was House's," Wilson mused. "Maybe a quarter would assume you'd had IVF because you couldn't get a man, and the rest would be a weird mix of folks assuming you were sleeping with an older man, a younger man, or a lesbian."

Cuddy reacted to that last. A lesbian? Well, she'd certainly heard the rumors about her and House, and about some other older man or a younger man, but a woman?

"Are people really saying that?" she asked Wilson. He merely shrugged.

"Fine," she said.

"Fine?"

"We'll tell people." Cuddy said. "Who should we tell so we could be sure it'll get around? House already knows and hasn't said anything, so that's out. Who's the nurse in pediatrics with the big mouth?"

"Come on," Wilson said, taking her by the hand, "there's a much easier way to do this." He pulled her out of her office and into the clinic. Pausing just long enough to make sure a few different nurses were watching, he pulled her close to him and kissed her thoroughly, leaving no room for speculation about what was going on. "See you at dinner," he whispered in her ear, and then left the clinic area, grinning like the cat that swallowed the canary and the canary's best friend.

Cuddy looked sheepishly around the clinic. An eerie silence had fallen over the normally bustling space. The nurses who had seen the kiss smiled at her. Cuddy walked back to her office, keeping her head up, until she reached her office. As the door swung closed behind her, she could hear a near explosion of chatter. She smiled. At least James will be able to collect on that bet, she thought.

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After his appointment with Quig, House was hungry so he'd gone to the cafeteria looking for Wilson. He checked his watch, bewildered. It was the right time, why wasn't he here eating? After waiting a few minutes, he grumpily paid for his own sandwich and took it back to his office to eat. He was unaware of the scene in the clinic, for the time being, as most of the cafeteria workers despised House too much to actually speak to him.

While House was eating his cold Reuben sandwich, Cuddy knocked lightly at his door and came in. She sat in one of the chairs in front of his desk and waited for him to acknowledge her.

House ignored her as long as he could. But she did have the most irritating way of staring at you, almost so that you felt like she was making a mental list of all the little things that she could be ordering you to do. He was always a little afraid that if he let her just watch him for too long, she'd come up with some truly devious scheme to make him miserable. She did seem to have a knack for it.

Making a frustrated face, he put his sandwich down, wiped his fingers on his napkin and swallowed the enormous bite he'd been chewing.

"You know, it's illegal to force someone to work all day without allowing them a break to eat lunch. I know, I looked it up," he said to her.

"I came to ask your opinion on something," Cuddy said.

"No, I don't think that blouse is too low-cut for a professional woman," House offered. "Oh, you had a specific topic in mind?" he said, in response to the look she shot him.

"The board has been looking for a way to get some publicity for the hospital, to try to attract some donors," Cuddy began. House looked pained. Was she going to ask him to give a speech? Did she learn nothing the last time? Or worse, some fund-raiser where he'd have to get dressed up? Of course, that would mean Cameron in a slinky dress. Maybe it wouldn't be terrible. His mind began to wander back to the little red thing she'd worn to the poker tournament when Cuddy's voice broke into his thoughts.

"Are you even listening?" Cuddy asked.

"Nope," House said.

"There's a family looking for doctors and hospitals to donate their services to perform a surgery to separate their conjoined twins. I thought I'd propose to the board that we offer to donate the use of the hospitals facilities. What do you think?"

"Will it involve any extra work for me?" House asked.

"I can't see how," Cuddy answered.

"Then I'm all for it," House said. "Can I finish my lunch now, boss?"

Cuddy gave him a withering look, and left. She decided to pitch her idea to the board. Even if the publicity did nothing for them, they'd be doing a good thing for this family, and their students would have a unique learning experience.

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Cameron peeked her head into House's office just as he was cleaning up his mess from lunch.

"Oh, you've already eaten," she said, disappointed. "I was going to buy you lunch."

"Where were you half an hour ago?" House asked, disgruntled. "I had to pay for that myself," he whined. Cameron laughed.

House stood from his chair and nodded for her to follow him. She went through the balcony door behind him, shivering slightly at the chill in the air. Autumn was here for sure.

House pulled her back to him, leaning up against the one spot on the balcony that had no door or window. Completely hidden from view, he kissed her softly.

"I missed you," he breathed against her lips.

"Me too," she replied, kissing him back lightly, teasingly. He groaned.

"Don't start what you can't finish," House warned.

"Who says I can't finish it?" Cameron asked with raised eyebrows. House smirked. She was getting better at this every day. He placed another soft kiss on her lips before letting her go.

"I've got interviews this afternoon," House told her. "No skipping work for an afternoon delight."

"Too bad," Cameron teased. "I've heard good things about the supply closet on the fourth floor."

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Wilson sat in one of the chairs across from House's desk, rubbing his temples vigorously. They'd already seen four candidates for the open fellowship, and House had managed to scare or insult all of them. In fact, he believed he might have made that last woman cry. He'd been expecting House to be difficult, maybe he'd been wrong to schedule so many interviews in one day.

"Headache, Jimmy?" House mocked.

Wilson merely scowled at him. He rubbed his hands across his face a few times and then crossed another name off his list. Thankfully, they only had one more interview today. If he could just get through this one, he could go back to his office and be alone.

"The next applicant is Dr. Michael Jasper, a cardiologist, graduated second in his class from Harvard. Just try to be a little less yourself, all right?" Wilson went to the doorway and called for Dr. Jasper, then returned to his seat without seeing who followed. House was smirking at him.

"I'm sorry," Wilson said to the young woman who had sat beside him "There must be two Dr. Jasper's? We wanted Dr. Michael Jasper."

"That's me," the woman replied. She was average height, but overweight, with jet-black hair and extremely dark brown eyes. "My parents were expecting a boy. My dad filled out the paperwork before I was born, and by the time they got over the fact that I was a girl, it was too late." She smiled warmly.

"Okay," Wilson said. "So, your application is very impressive, and your attending, Dr. Brooks, gave an absolutely glowing reference." Wilson paused. He looked down to check the notes he'd made, but his pause was exactly the opening House was waiting for.

"You know obesity is a huge contributor to heart disease," House said, conversationally.

"And hypertension, diabetes, stroke, certain types of cancer, miscarriages, kidney and liver disease…shall I continue?" Dr. Jasper looked at House squarely. "I assume you're not just testing my medical background, but rather commenting on the fact that I'm overweight."

Wilson groaned as he checked his watch. Less than three minutes, that might be a personal best for him, he thought to himself.

"And how do you think patients will feel after seeing an overweight doctor? Think they're likely to follow your advice?" House asked.

"Well, I imagine that they might think I'm human. And if they've seen you first, it would probably be a refreshing change of pace," Dr. Jasper retorted.

"Ha," House said. "And if I asked you why you're overweight?" House continued.

"I'd say it's partly due to my genetics, but also due to the fact that I don't always eat as healthy as I should. I'd say that working two jobs while I put myself through med school, an internship and a residency left me with little time for exercise. It's who I am." Dr. Jasper looked at House for a moment before she continued. "I've heard quite a bit about you, Dr. House. In fact, Dr. Brooks urged me not to apply for this fellowship. He seemed to think I might find you difficult to work with."

"Dr. House does have something of reputation, but that mostly stems from his high expectations for the members of his team," Wilson interjected, and both House and Dr. Jasper looked at him in disbelief.

"May I ask you a question?" Dr. Jasper asked House. The tone of her voice made it clear she intended to ask whether House agreed or not. He nodded. "If I asked why you're such a bastard?"

House smiled. "You're hired."

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"Well, she didn't cry. Is that the only criteria you have for new fellows now?" Wilson asked House.

"I need someone who isn't going to be afraid of me," House said. "Well, a little afraid is okay. I'll save the threatening her with the cane for her second day." He smirked at Wilson.

"Right. She seemed the type to intimidate easily," Wilson replied sarcastically. He looked at his watch. "You busy tonight? Lisa's got a board meeting, feel like dinner?"

"Lisa, huh? So I take it we're not keeping this little fling of yours a secret anymore?" House asked.

Wilson looked at him, puzzled. Was it possible House hadn't heard about their scene in the clinic?

"You're joking," Wilson said. House just shook his head. "I kissed her in the clinic this morning." House raised his eyebrows. "Collected about $1500 too."

"Nurse Brenda owes me $600," House smiled. "Cameron's meeting me at 10, but I've got time to eat."


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Yet another week had passed without a case coming their way. Cameron and House hadn't been spending as much time together as they would have liked. Cuddy was extremely busy trying to coordinate a team of 17 surgeons from around the world to arrive at PPTH and perform the surgery to separate a set of conjoined twins from somewhere in South America. Wilson was feeling a bit abandoned, and Cameron had taken pity on him. She invited him out for drinks one night, and House had shown up and made a ridiculous show of jealousy that left both her and Wilson snorting into their glasses.

House had taken the hint. He knew Wilson wasn't used to being alone. He'd been married or having an affair with someone for most of his adult life. So House had given in to Cameron's not so subtle hint and invited Wilson over to watch football on Sunday afternoon.

Monday morning came, and Cameron walked into the conference room bright and early as usual. There were no lights on in House's office, so she assumed he wasn't in yet. She smirked, wondering just how much he and Wilson had had to drink during the game yesterday, and calculating how annoying she could be if he had a hangover today. She was so busy plotting to torture him while she made a pot of coffee that she didn't hear him sneak up behind her. He snaked his arms around her waist and buried his face in her hair. She turned in his arms and punched him softly on the shoulder.

"Don't do that!" she scolded. "How does a man as big as you with a cane, no less, sneak up on people like a ninja?" She was giggling now, not really angry at all.

"A man as big as me, huh? I thought we agreed not to talk about bedroom stuff at work."

"House," Cameron groaned. She disentangled herself from his arms and reached for his coffee mug. She poured him a cup and added one packet of sugar, the way he preferred. She turned and handed it to him.

Chase came into the conference room, and almost backed out again. He felt like he was intruding on a private moment, despite the fact that House and Cameron weren't even touching. They were just so, into each other, it was as if he didn't exist. They were totally oblivious to him. He sighed a little. He wanted that for himself. Not with Cameron, really, but with someone.

"Chase, are you okay?" Cameron asked.

"Yeah, fine. Just wondering whether the coffee in the NICU is any good," he said easily. House had limped back into his office without saying good morning, par for the course. It only helped solidify that Chase's decision had been the right one.

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Another day of boredom came to a close. And then, the next one began. Cameron, Chase and Foreman sat at the conference room table on Tuesday morning playing Scrabble. Cuddy had forbidden House from sending Chase to the clinic to cover any more of his hours. Cameron and Foreman had clinic hours, but weren't scheduled until the afternoon.

"A-T-A-X-I-A" Foreman intoned triumphantly as he placed his letters on the board.

"Damn," Chase cursed softly. Foreman had used his A. Now there was no space on the board for aneurysm.

"Is this what I'm paying you people for?" House chided as he entered the conference room with a young woman in tow. Cameron, knowing this must be the new fellow House had hired, stood up for the introductions.

"Cameron and Foreman, this is Dr. Michael Jasper, cardiologist extraordinaire and our new fellow." House pointed out Cameron and Foreman to Dr. Jasper, ignoring Chase completely.

"Nice to meet you both," Dr. Jasper said. She turned to House. "Do you not know who this one is?" she asked, indicating Chase.

"This is Dr. Wombat, oops, I mean Dr. Chase. He'll be leaving us at the end of this week. I'm sorry, it's all too heartbreaking, I can't continue," he faked a sob and escaped into his office.

Cameron rolled her eyes. She remembered similar treatment when she'd come in to meet the team and get oriented to the hospital. The sort of small talk and chatter that was necessary when showing a new employee around the hospital was more than he could tolerate. Cameron looked at their new team member. She was a pretty woman, if a bit overweight. In fact, Cameron was a bit surprised House hadn't commented on it. It was so unlike him to let any possible weakness go unexploited. She'd have to ask him about that.

"You can call me Cameron," she said to Dr. Jasper. "No idea why, but we all sort of go by our last names here."

"That will be a nice change of pace. The last place I worked everyone made such a big deal of calling me Michael all the time." Jasper smiled at Cameron.

"It is a bit unusual," Cameron commented.

"What can I say? Ultrasound techs are not to be trusted." Foreman and Cameron both laughed, but Chase continued to stare at Jasper, which he had been doing the whole time.

"So Dr. Chase, you're leaving?" Jasper asked him.

"Huh?" Chase said. "Oh, yeah. I'm taking an attending position in the NICU here."

"Chase is an intensivist," Foreman offered, as Chase seemed to have temporarily lost the ability to carry on a conversation. "Call me Foreman, please. I don't know if I'd answer you if you called me by my first name. I'm a neurologist. In fact," he said, checking his watch, "I told Dr. Kennedy I'd come upstairs and review a few cases with him since we don't have any patients right now. I'll be back before lunch." He turned and left the room.

"Well, why don't I show you around," Cameron offered. She knew this was why House had brought Jasper in to introduce her to the team, and although it was generally accepted that the fellow who was leaving would orient the new team member, Chase was being weird.

"Thanks. Nice meeting you, Chase," Jasper said.

"What? Right, uh, you too," Chase answered in a dazed sort of way. What was it about her eyes?

Cameron gave Chase an impatient, what is wrong with you today, sort of look, and led Jasper out of the conference room for a tour of the hospital.

"So," House said, walking back into the conference room, having observed the whole scene from the safety and quiet of his office, "is it your plan to sleep with all of my female fellows?"

"What?" Chase asked again. He shook his head. "What are you talking about?"

"Please," House scoffed. "You couldn't be more obvious if you actually had drool coming out of your mouth. I thought you hated fat people?"

Chase shot House a venomous glance and left the conference room without answering.

"Touchy," House commented.

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Cameron and House had just finished dinner and were settled down in the living room. House was flipping through the channels on the TV, once again disgusted that Cameron didn't have satellite TV. Cameron was curled in the armchair, the nearby floor lamp trained over her shoulder so she could read. Currently, she was engrossed in a journal article about an outbreak of smallpox in Portugal.

"Aren't you finished yet?" House whined.

Cameron took off her glasses and looked at House, amused. "Bored?"

"You need TiVo," House answered.

"Right, because I spend so much time watching TV," Cameron replied dryly.

"No, but I do. I need something to do while I'm here, besides the obvious," House said.

"I need to read this stuff," Cameron said sensibly.

"Do you want me to tell you how it ends?"

"Yeah, like you read this," Cameron scoffed. She placed her glasses back on, and picked up her journal. House proceeded to tell her all of the salient points of the article she was currently reading. "You read this already? It was just published."

House looked at her seriously. "If I tell you this, you can't tell anyone." Cameron was intrigued. "I took a speed-reading course in college."

Cameron looked at him with frank disbelief. House smiled at her, a genuine smile.

"How else do you think I keep up with all of this stuff? I read all the medical journals. Even some that aren't in English." House confessed. Cameron put down the journal and joined House on the couch. He allowed her to snuggle next to him and handed her the remote control.

"I think you just broke some universal law. The man is never supposed to give up the remote control," Cameron said.

"I don't plan on watching the TV," House growled, and began kissing Cameron's neck. She sighed, and closed her eyes. Moments later, all thoughts of journal articles and TiVo were forgotten.

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Hours later, House awoke in bed alone. He glanced around Cameron's bedroom, unsure of himself. They always spent Tuesday and Thursday nights at Cameron's. Those were his physio days, and she insisted on his using her Jacuzzi in the evenings. Even after a few weeks, House was still uncomfortable being alone in Cameron's bedroom. He got up and grabbed his cane from the footboard. Limping down the hall, he found Cameron in the living room, curled up on the couch in the dark.

"It's 3am," House said.

"Couldn't sleep," Cameron said. House sat heavily on the couch next to her, and she immediately snuggled into his chest. She ran her fingers lightly over his chest. "Tell me a story." House snorted. He looked down at her with amusement. "You know everything about me, and I hardly know anything about you. Tell me a story about you. Anything, I don't care." She looked into his eyes, and House knew he couldn't refuse. Sighing, he rested his head on the back of the couch and thought.

"Did I ever tell you about how I met Wilson?" Cameron shook her head no. House grunted; it was a good story. "I had just come to PPTH, it was about nine years ago. Wilson had just started there too; he took over as the new oncology head. He wasn't married then, and I was with Stacy. I didn't know it, but Wilson and Stacy had known each other from high school. So, I was in the clinic one day, hiding out from Cuddy," Cameron huffed a laugh here, "Yes, even then. Anyway, Stacy had come by the hospital to meet me for lunch, and she was waiting in the clinic reception area. Wilson came in, and saw her. I'm sure you can imagine the whole reunion scene. They were all over each other, the huge hug and a kiss, the whole works. I was watching them through the blinds, of course. I knew him by sight, and he already had a reputation with the nurses. He kept touching her arm while they were talking, and she kept laughing and slapping him on the arm, blushing. It was very ninth grade."

"I'm not really the jealous type," Cameron laughed again, and House feigned anger. "Do you want to hear this story or don't you?" Cameron quickly stopped laughing and kissed him softly on the cheek. "I really just wanted to know who he thought he was, with his hands all over her, and I walked out to say hello. Just then he made some comment, typical Wilson, about ditching her boyfriend and running off together, and I may have accidentally punched him in the face." Cameron was shaking with silent laughter, but House pretended not to notice. "Stacy smoothed it over, you know lawyers, always with the talking. I haven't been able to shake him since."

Cameron sat up straighter and kissed House sweetly. House kissed her back, not quite as sweetly as she'd started. She'd been running her hands over his bare chest the whole time, and he was only a man, after all. She moaned softly, and before long they were breathless and gathering up discarded pajamas.

House took her hand as they walked back to the bedroom. "If you're going to do that every time I tell you a story, I'll start with my first day of pre-school," House teased. Cameron grinned to herself, whatever it took to get him talking.

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Early the next morning, House leaned back in his chair, oblivious to the world as his Ipod blasted Bobby Bland through the ear buds. Eyes closed, House didn't know Wilson had come in until his tennis ball bounced off his head. Annoyed, he turned the Ipod off and looked at Wilson expectantly.

"Need a favor," Wilson said, somewhat distracted.

"You're asking the wrong guy," House said, reaching for the Ipod to turn the music back on.

"I need to borrow Cameron for the day," Wilson said quickly, before House could drown him out. House's hand paused above the button, and he looked at Wilson, impassive.

"I don't share," House told him.

"Greg, please. Lisa's running herself into the ground trying to organize this whole separation surgery; she needs help. Her assistant is useless, and I have patients all day. I know you're no help," House tried to interject a witty retort but Wilson held up his hand, "it's not good for the baby. Please, I promise she'll be all yours again in time for dinner."

House waved a hand at Wilson to indicate it was okay. He had just reached for the Ipod again when Jasper opened the door from the conference room and stepped inside his office. She glanced at Wilson, but addressed House.

"Dr. House? Since we don't have any patients, I was wondering if could look over some of your old case files, see what sort of stuff you guys are dealing with?" Jasper asked.

"Initiative, I like it. Fine, but you'll have to see Cameron, I have no idea where the files are," House said. "Actually, ask her to come in here, would you?"

Jasper stepped back into the conference room, returning a moment later with Cameron.

"You belong to Wilson today," House said, pointing at Cameron. "She," he now pointed at Jasper, "wants to look at some old case files." He gave everyone a last look to make sure nobody else needed him for anything, and then pushed the button on his Ipod again, letting the music envelop him.

"I can get you about a dozen files to look over," Cameron told Jasper, "if you can give me 15 minutes, Dr. Wilson?"

"Meet me in Dr. Cuddy's office," Wilson said, and left House's office to convince Lisa to accept some help. Cameron led Jasper out of House's office and to the filing drawer she kept at her desk.

"These are the last dozen patients we worked on. It's about three months worth, so start with the oldest ones because those will be getting filed pretty soon," Cameron told Jasper.

"A dozen in three months? That's it?" Jasper asked in surprise. Cameron smiled.

"Dr. House is very particular about the cases he takes. We tend to deal with only the most bizarre situations. Foreman will be around this afternoon, and I know House isn't allowed to send Chase to the clinic anymore, so he should be around too. You could ask them about any of the cases if you need to." Cameron grabbed her laptop from the desk and left Jasper to the files.

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"Are you trying to suggest that I'm not capable of doing my job, James?" Cuddy said coldly.

"No, I'm suggesting that right now you're in the middle of a very large and time-sensitive project and that you could use some help getting the day to day items out of the way so you can concentrate on it. Your assistant is a moron, so you're not getting the help you need," Wilson was careful to keep his voice calm, but not patronizing. "And I'm worried about you and the baby. You're barely sleeping and I know you're not eating as well as you should. I don't want anything to happen to the two of you," these last words were spoken with a soft urgency that made Cuddy forget her anger. She took a deep breath and sighed.

"I know, you're right. And I'm sorry I'm being so unreasonable. But this is my hospital and I don't want anything to go wrong." Cuddy was exhausted, and she knew he was right. She was pushing herself too hard. "Fine, I'll look into getting someone to help me out, okay?"

Just then there was a knock at the door, and Cameron entered. Cuddy looked at Wilson, who smiled at her sheepishly.

"What can I do for you, Cameron?" Cuddy asked.

"Wilson asked me to meet him here," Cameron replied. She looked at Wilson, unsure. "You did say Cuddy's office, didn't you?"

"I'm sure you heard about the separation surgery that's going on here next week?" Wilson asked Cameron.

"I have, and I think it's wonderful," Cameron said. "It's good that the hospital is donating their facilities, and what a great opportunity for the surgical students to be able to observe a procedure like that."

Cuddy smiled, as Cameron echoed the same arguments she had used in her presentation to the board of directors. Maybe she should take Jimmy's advice and get to know her better. If she and Jimmy were going to raise this baby together, and Cameron and House were a couple it was inevitable that they'd be spending more time together.

"It's taken up more time than I realized," Cuddy said, "and some of the less glamorous but equally important administrative duties have been neglected. My assistant …"

"Is a moron?" Cameron asked before she could stop herself. "Sorry. I just, I meant, um…"

"You're not wrong," Cuddy sighed. "I don't want to take you away from something else."

"Like watching House listen to his Ipod? He's hot but even I can't stare at him all day," Cameron said. "Sorry, again." Cameron looked at both Cuddy and Wilson, bewildered. "I can't help it. These things just come flying out of my mouth."

"It's called House-itis, don't worry about it," Cuddy reassured her. "I'm immune."

"Well, I have a patient. I'll leave you ladies to it," Wilson winked at Cuddy and gave Cameron a quick smile as he walked out the door.

"What can I help you with?" Cameron asked.

"Well, I'm not really sure. The charting for the clinic is horribly behind, and so is the charting for my patients. There's correspondence to be answered, requisition forms to be approved, budgetary items…" Cuddy's voice trailed off.

"I haven't been doing House's paperwork for the last few years in vain, then. Go and do whatever it is you need to do, I'll take care of whatever I can, and whatever I can't will at least be organized when you get back." Cameron smiled at Cuddy, and Cuddy returned the smile in relief. "Allison, thank you," Cuddy said, and she closed the door on her way out.

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Jasper spent an hour or two reviewing some old cases before Chase and Foreman came back to the conference room. Chase seemed slightly surprised to see her there, and Foreman noticed he was tongue-tied once again. Foreman asked what she was doing, and she explained she just wanted to get a feel for the type of cases they typically had.

"It doesn't seem like you guys have a typical sort of case," Jasper told Foreman.

"Not really. House gets to pick and choose his patients. He only takes the most difficult cases, or the ones he finds interesting for some reason. The only thing typical about them is they're weird," Foreman told Jasper.

"I'm kind of getting that idea," Jasper replied, closing a file. She picked up another from the pile and looked at Foreman. "Did you seriously have a case of the plague? And scurvy? Who gets scurvy?"

"You think that's weird, you should hear about some of the clinic patients House gets. It's like the guy's a magnet for the bizarre. He actually had a patient once who tried to use strawberry jelly as a contraceptive," Foreman chuckled, remembering when House had paged him to the clinic for that one.

"She did not," Jasper gasped.

"What about Georgia?" Chase asked, finally recovering his powers of speech.

"Who's Georgia?" Jasper asked.

"This elderly patient who had neuro-syphilis. She got a major crush on House; she wrote him a love poem and Wilson read it in front of the entire clinic. That was a good day," Foreman laughed. It wasn't often you got to see that completely gob-smacked look on House's face.

"What about the guy who turned himself orange?" Chase asked. House had gotten into some hot water over that case, too.

"Wow, I can't wait to start pulling clinic hours," Jasper joked. As if on cue, House entered the room.

"Excellent. Showing initiative again. No time like the present," House said, tossing her his ID badge. Jasper caught it and looked at Chase and Foreman with trepidation. She turned to ask House if he was serious, but he'd already left the room.

"He's serious?" Jasper asked.

"I'll come with you," Chase volunteered, and then nearly knocked the table over as he tried to stand up from his chair before detangling his legs. "Sorry," he muttered, embarrassed. Jasper just smiled at him.

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Cuddy returned to her office in the early afternoon, and gasped when she realized she could actually see the top of her desk. Cameron had stepped out, and Cuddy began quickly taking note of all she had done. The clinic charting was current and filed, her own charting was updated, requisition forms had been reviewed and were awaiting her final approval and all the correspondence had been answered. Cuddy was in awe.

"Oh, Dr. Cuddy, you're back," Cameron said, a hint of disappointment in her voice.

"Don't sound so happy about it," Cuddy joked.

"Oh, no. It's just, I was hoping to tackle that budget report from pediatrics," Cameron said.

"Cameron, are you kidding? This is incredible, how on earth did you get all this stuff done?" Cuddy asked her, the honest praise in her voice causing Cameron to blush slightly.

"I guess I just have a knack for paperwork," Cameron said lightly, embarrassed. "Of course, being uninterrupted for four or five hours helps too."

"I guess that would be helpful," Cuddy remarked. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had an hour uninterrupted.

"You know, Dr. Cuddy, it's not really my place, but it's such a shame that your assistants couldn't take care of some this stuff for you. I mean, there's really no need for a lot of it to even make it to your desk," Cameron said.

"Well, I'm not the easiest boss, or so I've been told," Cuddy replied. "And most of my assistants come from the college. By the time you can find someone half-way decent, they're graduating or starting their rotations here and they quit and I have to start all over again."

"You can't be a worse boss than House." Cameron joked.

"I certainly hope not," Cuddy answered, and they both laughed. It was an easy sort of laughter, and both Cameron and Cuddy were aware of how nice it was to have another woman to talk too. It was something they were both sorely missing.

"Dr. Cuddy, I was wondering if you and Jimmy, I mean Dr. Wilson, um…" Cameron faltered, unsure.

"It's okay, I know you two are friends. If Jimmy and I what?"

"If maybe you'd like to have dinner with House and me some time?"

"I'd like that," Cuddy responded, warmly. "How will you talk House into it? He hates dinner parties."

"I won't tell him," Cameron answered, as if that were obvious. Cuddy grinned. Yes, it would definitely be nice to have a woman friend. Especially one who could get around House.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Whew, sorry it took so long for this update. My computer was having some issues, and then this site has been having some issues. Days to be able to log on and then days to figure out how to post since it wouldn't accept my word docs. Yuck! Anyway, here's the next installment, please R&R. Thanks!!!**

Chapter 23

"I'm impressed, Greg," Dianna said, as House finished another physio session. "You barely whined at all today." She flashed him a grin.

"Just lulling you into a false sense of security," House answered, arming sweat from his forehead.

"I consider myself warned," Dianna responded. "Seriously, in just a month you've nearly doubled the distance you're able to ride in the 50 minutes. It's very impressive. I think next week we'll start the treadmill."

House gave Dianna a dubious look. He wasn't sure he was ready for the treadmill, not with an audience.

"We'll start slow, trust me," Dianna reassured him. "And, why don't you bring your Ipod with you? It will help to have something else to concentrate on."

House only nodded. He'd have the entire weekend to worry about physio. For now, he just wanted to get into the shower and get down to the clinic to get his two hours over with. He felt a hand lightly touch his arm. He looked up at Dianna, who had leaned in close.

"Dr. Wilson bet me $100 I couldn't get you on the treadmill. I'll cut you in, 50/50?" She smirked, and House nodded, grinning. He did love to prove Wilson wrong, and taking his money in the process was just icing on the cake.

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House had been in the clinic nearly two hours, when he walked into Exam Room 2. There was a young man on the exam table, doubled over in pain. The nurse was standing by his head, holding an emesis basin. House rolled his eyes, and closed the door behind him. With luck, this guy would be his last patient of the day.

"Abdominal pain and vomiting," House read from the chart. "Sounds like gastroenteritis to me. When did the pain start?"

"This morning," the man managed to grunt out.

"Uh, huh," House said, now helping the man to lie on his back for an abdominal exam. "And the vomiting?"

"Didn't start till I got here," the man replied, panting. House examined the patient's abdomen, while the nurse took his temperature.

"Temperature is 101," the nurse informed House. He nodded. He pressed on the patient's abdomen, and the man screamed.

"Okay, Mr. Bromley, you probably have appendicitis. I'm going to have a surgeon come down here for a consult," House told the man, who had once again rolled on his side and curled up in pain. House picked up the phone in the exam room. "Need a surgical consult for an appendectomy," he told the nurse who answered the line. "Keep an eye on him until the surgeon gets here," House told the nurse. He stepped out of the room, and left the chart in the folder by the door. He walked to the nurse's station.

"Patient in Exam Room 2 is waiting on a surgical consult for an appendectomy," House informed the nurse at the desk. "Dr. House checking out." House stood at the desk for a few minutes, making a few notes on the charts of the last two patients he'd seen. Normally he would have left them, but it was getting more and more difficult to steal handfuls of lollipops while the nurses were watching. He'd have to wait until her back was turned. House saw the surgical resident go into the exam room with the chart. Just as the desk nurse turned to answer the phone, and House had reached his hand into the large jar on the desk, the surgical resident came out of the exam room, looking annoyed.

"Dr. House," he shouted, and House cringed, caught by the nurse who turned to see what the yelling was about. House took the lollipops anyway, and shoved them in his coat pocket. The surgical resident had now crossed the clinic and shoved the patient's file into House's chest. "The next time you call for a surgical consult, you might want to spend two minutes looking at the history. This guy had his appendix out eight months ago."

"That's impossible," House said, looking at the file now. "He has a classic appendicitis exam," he protested.

"Not without an appendix he doesn't," the resident replied, and walked off. House watched him go, and then looked back at the door to Exam Room 2. "Have not appendicitis guy admitted and transferred upstairs," House told the nurse at the desk, and limped off to page his team.

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"Differential diagnosis, people," House said, looking at his current staff of four fellows. "I say, patient has appendicitis. Medical records say he had his appendix out already."

"You want us to do a differential diagnosis on something that's already been treated?" Chase asked.

"No, but thanks for playing. What else could account for all the physical symptoms of appendicitis along with memory loss?" House asked. He was greeted by silence. "Come on, people, ideas."

"Nothing would account for all of those symptoms. How are you classifying memory loss?" Foreman asked. "Amnesia, selective memories, short term memory? Neurologically, it makes a big difference."

"Guy insists he hasn't had his appendix out," House answered. "I'd classify it as just plain obstinate, but I'm not a neurologist."

"What about porphyria?" Cameron suggested. "Instead of memory loss, he's having delusions?"

"I like it," House said, and wrote porphyria on the whiteboard. "What else?"

"How long ago did he have the appendix out? Maybe the pain is from an infection at the incision site, or from the surgery?" Jasper asked.

"Eight months, too long ago," Cameron answered, looking over the file.

"A surgical instrument, a sponge or something left behind? It could have moved and be causing pain?" Foreman suggested.

"We should get an ultrasound of his abdomen," Chase said. "We could check for gallstones or kidney stones, too. They wouldn't explain the memory loss, but they would account for the rest of his symptoms."

"Jasper, you and Chase can handle the ultrasound. Cameron, I need somebody researching the rest of this guy's history and Foreman, do a neurological exam in case there's something else going on." House watched his team gather their files and leave the room. He sat at the conference room table, and rubbed his leg. It was always sore after physio, but today it hurt worse than usual. He reached absently into the pocket of his jacket before realizing he wouldn't find any Vicodin there. He closed his eyes and rubbed his leg harder.

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Wilson walked into House's office, concerned. He'd eaten lunch alone. That wasn't unusual when House had a case, but it was definitely strange on a Thursday. House was always hungry after physio, but he hadn't shown up in the cafeteria, despite the fact that Wilson had waited for twenty minutes after he'd finished eating. Either it was a really good case, or something was bothering him.

He found House on the balcony, staring at the trees. He was leaning decidedly to his left, and Wilson's concern doubled. His leg must be really bothering him today.

"Light bulbs burn out?" Wilson asked. House looked at him, but said nothing. "Tough case?" Wilson tried again.

"I missed the diagnosis," House said. Wilson nodded. No room for food when you're busy wallowing in self-doubt.

"Appendicitis guy?" Wilson asked. House glanced at him. "I bumped into Cameron. She's worried about you."

"She's always worried about me," House replied.

"Don't," Wilson said. "Don't do that. You can't just shut her off because you're feeling unsure of yourself. Not now. Even Gregory the Great is allowed to make a mistake now and then."

House nodded, and then dropped his head. Wilson knew him too well. That was exactly what he'd been doing. He sent them off to do tests and came out here to loathe himself in private. And he was right about Cameron, too. They never talked about their feelings, but he knew he couldn't just leave her out in the cold anymore.

"Dr. House?" a voice said from his office door, and he and Wilson turned around. It was Jasper, with Chase close behind. "We've got a problem."

House and Wilson came back into the office, and House sat in his chair. His leg was really hurting him today, and he didn't want anyone to notice. Chase and Jasper were setting up a tape for House to see.

"This is the tape of the ultrasound we did," Jasper said, as she pointed to the screen, where the ultrasound images were now playing. "I know I'm a cardiologist and all, but that's an appendix."


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24 

"That's impossible," Foreman said from the doorway.

"Impossible or not, that's an appendix," Jasper reiterated.

"Why do I doubt myself?" House mused aloud.

"Maybe because the patient has already had an appendectomy?" Chase asked.

"Does he have appendectomy scars?" Wilson asked.

"He has some scars on his abdomen, they're definitely from a laproscopic procedure," Chase answered. "But the patient has also had his gall bladder removed, so we can't be certain when they're from."

"All fascinating, but what say we get that diseased appendix out of this guy before it ruptures?" House asked.

Foreman and Chase left the room to take care of getting their patient prepped for surgery. House and Wilson looked at the ultrasound again, while Jasper stood quietly in the background.

"Your appendix doesn't just grow back," Wilson said. "Unless you're wrong and it's not his appendix. Tumor?"

"House isn't wrong," Cameron said, entering with the patient's file from the conference room.

"That's my girl," House said. Wilson rolled his eyes.

"We're all looking through the history at the procedures, we missed the most obvious thing. The records from his appendectomy say Mr. Bromley is 5'7" but our patient is about 6'1". Unless he's had an inexplicable growth spurt at age 32, it's two different people," Cameron said. "Whoever had his appendix out eight months ago was not Dennis Bromley."

"Medical identity theft is one of the fastest growing forms of crime against an individual in the US," Jasper said. House looked at her with interest. "My brother's a cop and my dad's an insurance agent. I hear about this kind of stuff all the time. Health care is expensive. Somebody who can't afford insurance probably can't afford an appendectomy either. But, if you steal somebody's wallet and get their insurance card, you can get treatment pretty much anywhere. Nobody ever asks for picture ID with a health insurance card," Jasper shrugged.

"Okay then. Since you're such an expert, why don't you take Mr. Brinkley's …"

"Bromley's," Cameron corrected.

"Whatever. Mr. Bromley's chart to one of the hospital attorneys and have them look into getting it corrected," House ordered Jasper. She took the file from Cameron and left the office.

"Now, who to have lunch with?" House looked at Wilson and then Cameron. This was going to be interesting. Cameron and Wilson glanced at each other, both thinking the same thing. The best friend, or the girlfriend?

"Why not both?" Cameron asked.

"That's right, I forgot you were into threesomes," House joked, and Cameron shot him a glare.

"Sorry to disappoint, but I'm having lunch with Lisa today," Wilson said, as he exited. When he reached the door, he turned back. "By the way Allison, thanks for helping her out. I don't know what you did, exactly, but she looked more relaxed than she has in weeks. Much better for the baby."

Cameron stared at Wilson's retreating back. House watched her carefully, trying to read the expression on her face.

"Baby?" Cameron asked House.

"Yeah. Did I forget to mention that?" House said. He was still studying her, looking for any sort of reaction.

"I don't think I'm really hungry right now," Cameron said quietly. She walked toward the door slowly.

"Cameron," House called. She stopped and turned to look back at him from the doorway. He could still read nothing in her facial expression, and it concerned him. He knew she must be feeling something, but what? He didn't know how to ask her about it without being a total jerk, so he said nothing. Cameron dropped her eyes and walked away.

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"You lied," House said to Wilson, entering his office from the balcony.

"Yes," Wilson said, although he had no idea what House was talking about. Sometimes it was just easier to agree with him.

"You're not having lunch with Cuddy," House said.

"And you're not having lunch with Cameron. Why not?" Wilson asked, trying to deflect the question.

"I don't know," House answered.

"You don't know? I thought you knew everything," Wilson said sarcastically.

"I never claimed to know everything, just most things. I'm completely willing to admit I know next to nothing about figuring out Cameron," House said as he lay on Wilson's couch and closed his eyes. "What's the rule about telling your girlfriend's secrets to your best friend?"

"I think that depends on why you tell," Wilson replied. "If it's because you're an insensitive ogre, you're probably not supposed to tell. If it's because you're worried about her and need advice, then I think it's okay as long as you keep the details to a minimum."

"She's upset," House said. Wilson waited, but House seemed to have nothing more to say.

"Okay, you'll have to say a little bit more than that," Wilson urged.

"About the baby," House offered.

"The baby?" Wilson squeaked. "She's pregnant?! Why didn't you tell me? When did she find out? Is she keeping…"

"Cuddy's baby," House interrupted, tiredly. Sometimes Wilson was too slow.

"So, Cameron's not pregnant," Wilson said, and waited for confirmation.

"Cameron can't get pregnant," House answered.

"Ah," Wilson said, as the light dawned. "And she's upset because Lisa is pregnant."

"The evidence does point in that direction," House said.

"Wait, why can't Cameron get pregnant?" Wilson asked. "She's young, she's healthy. Just because she didn't get pregnant when she was married doesn't necessarily mean she can't."

"That probably qualifies as the details part I'm not supposed to tell you about. She just can't. She didn't know Cuddy was knocked up. When you mentioned the baby she sort of zoned out and took off," House said, now sitting up and tapping his cane on the floor while he studied his sneakers intently.

"Wow," Wilson let out a breath. "I'm not sure I'm the best person to help you out with this. None of my wives ever wanted to have children, so I don't really have any experience. But judging from what I know about Allison, she's probably feeling a little jealous and hating herself for it."

"Why hating herself?"

"Because she's a good person, and good people are supposed to be happy for their friends when they're having a baby. She's not happy for me and Lisa yet, and she feels like it makes her a terrible person," Wilson explained. "That's just a theory. You're going to have to talk to her about it."

"I knew you were going to say that," House said. He hated talking about his feelings. Why did everyone always want him to talk about his feelings? Well, except Cameron. She had only tried that once, and then she never asked him again. Why was that? House shook his head, just another thing about her he'd probably never understand.

"I actually do have a patient coming in. Is there something else you need?" Wilson asked House. House shook his head no. He stood up and limped back out to the balcony.


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25 

House had been sitting at his desk, backpack on the floor, waiting for Cameron for over half an hour. It was now nearly six o'clock, much later than they ever left on one of his physio days. His leg was throbbing. He hadn't seen Cameron since Wilson had let it slip about the baby. House had considered going to look for her, but decided if she wanted to be alone, he could respect that for once.

"What are you still doing here?" Wilson asked, sticking his head in the office door.

"Waiting for Cameron," House replied.

"Cameron left almost an hour ago," Wilson said, confused. "She didn't tell you?"

"No," House said. "Are you sure?"

"I saw her get in her car and drive off," Wilson told him. House looked annoyed, and then concerned. It was very unlike Cameron to leave without checking in with him, even before they'd starting seeing each other.

"Well, looks like I need a ride," House said, standing up and shouldering his bag and grabbing his cane from the edge of the desk.

"You didn't bring your bike?" Wilson asked.

"It's Thursday," House said. "Physio today." Wilson nodded. House usually went to Cameron's place on his physio days to use her Jacuzzi tub. Wilson frowned at House. Why would Cameron leave him here?

"Am I taking you home?" Wilson asked. House paused on his way out the door. Should he leave Cameron be and just go home? Or should he have Wilson drop him off at her place?

"No," House replied, and Wilson nodded, following him to the elevators.

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Cameron heard the knock at her door, but was too tired to answer it. She knew who it was. She wasn't sure she really wanted to talk to him about this yet, but she also knew he wouldn't just go away. She debated for a few minutes, during which time the knocking became increasingly loud and frequent. Cameron sighed, and then stood up to answer the door.

She opened the door for him and turned away, sitting back down on the couch without offering so much as a hello. House raised an eyebrow in surprise, but came in and dropped his bag near the door. He stood quietly for a minute, and then sat beside Cameron on the couch. Neither looked at the other. House was waiting for her to say something, anything. He expected at any moment that she would start pouring her heart out to him. But she just sat quietly. Unnerved, House decided to break the tension.

"When I was twelve, my father was on leave for Halloween. My mom decided it would be nice to throw a Halloween party. So, after all the kids were done trick-or-treating, a large group of Marines and their wives showed up at my house to party. One of my dad's buddies decided it would be really funny to spike the punch. My mom, knowing that you don't just serve regular punch to Marines, had already spiked it. Nobody told me. I had three glasses before anybody realized. Of course, they only realized when I fell face first down the basement stairs. I broke a tooth, and my nose," House said. He pointed to a small scar on the right side of his nose. "I tell people I got this in college during a particularly bloody lacrosse game, but actually, it was from getting tanked at my mom's Halloween party and taking a header down a flight of stairs."

"Thank you," Cameron smiled at House weakly. House nodded. He understood. She didn't want to talk about it, and she appreciated that he wasn't pushing her. "Did you come all the way over here to tell me that story?"

"It's Thursday," House said. Cameron's eyes widened.

"I completely forgot. I'll go fill up the tub right now," Cameron jumped up from the couch, but before she could get more than a step away, a hand encircled her wrist. She looked back at House.

"Why don't you join me?" House asked. Cameron was about to refuse, but she searched his face and saw no hint of suggestion. She was surprised; it wasn't very like House to be so considerate of someone else's feelings. She nodded and they went to the bathroom.

As they settled into the Jacuzzi together, Cameron seated between House's legs, her head resting on his chest and his lips on the top of her head, Cameron closed her eyes and sighed. She'd been dreading this moment for weeks. They'd very carefully avoided any discussions about their feelings. She knew he hated talking about that stuff, and she wasn't about to push him. That had blown up in her face the last time. She was happy, for the time being, to just let things go along as they were. But tonight, that didn't matter. Because even though neither of them had said a word, he made it better.

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Early the next morning, House stood in the doorway to Cameron's kitchen, watching her get ready for work.

"Cookies?" House asked, as Cameron slapped his hand away from the plate she was wrapping in plastic wrap.

"It's Chase's last day," Cameron said.

"And you baked him cookies?" House asked slowly. Cameron turned away from the counter and looked at him, taking in the sarcastic look she knew so well.

"You think this is stupid," Cameron said.

"Yeah," House said, amazed that she had to ask.

"Why?"

"He took advantage of you while you were high on meth and you baked him cookies. Foreman tried to kill you and you saved his life. Is there a hand book for this stuff?" House asked.

"Well, you treated me like crap for three years and I'm sleeping with you," Cameron retorted. "I'll have to add that to my list."

"Where's the card?" House asked.

"What?" Cameron asked back, as though she wasn't sure what he meant.

"The card. You know, the sweet and sincere Hallmark greeting wishing Chase the best of luck in his new endeavor and telling him how much you'll miss working with him, the one with the flowers or the puppies. Where is it?" House was now searching Cameron's coat pockets as she put her laptop in her bag.

"Why, do you want to sign it?" Cameron teased.

"Will there be room under all the X's and O's I'm sure you put under your name?" House snarked.

"It's in my purse, now can we go?" Cameron asked. "We're going to be late."

"It's not even 9," House whined.

"We're supposed to be there at 9," Cameron replied.

House grumbled, but put on his jacket and picked up his backpack. He knew it drove Cameron crazy to be late for work, and even though he hated coming in on time, it was nice to have the extra time to screw with Wilson's head.

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The day passed uneventfully for House and his ducklings, as was-too-appendicitis guy, as House called him, was recovering nicely from surgery. At about 3pm, Chase, Foreman, Cameron and Jasper were sitting in the conference room together, doing nothing. Cameron was feeling a little sad, as she realized she would no longer have Chase to tease. They hadn't had an easy relationship over the past year, but she would still count him among her friends.

Foreman and Jasper had once again been discussing some old cases, but the conversation was lagging a bit. It was Friday afternoon, House was at his therapy session with Quig, their patient was recovering and they didn't feel like working.

"So, Jasper, you said yesterday that your father is an insurance agent, and your brother is a cop?" Cameron asked.

"One of my brothers, yes," Jasper replied.

"One?" Foreman asked. They had nothing to do, and it would be good to get to know their new team member better. Especially since Chase was so obviously taken with her. It would be great leverage to mess with his head.

"I have five older brothers," Jasper told them.

"Wow, that's quite a family," Cameron said. She was a little jealous; she would have dearly loved to have siblings she could remember.

"Well, my parents both came from really big families, so they both wanted lots of kids," Jasper said. "And I like being the baby. By the time I got to be a teenager, my brothers had already done everything. Nothing left to shock Mom and Dad with. It sure made high school a lot easier."

Cameron and Chase both smiled a little sadly, remembering their own high school days. Cameron's a haze of drugs and work and Chase's a lifetime of caring for his own mother and then watching her die.

"How about you all?" Jasper asked.

"I have an older brother, Marcus. We didn't talk for a long time, but he was our patient a while ago, and now things are getting better between us. In fact, I'm going to visit him and his family for Thanksgiving this year," Foreman said.

"That's nice, I'm glad you guys are doing so well," Cameron said to him. She realized how little time she spent talking to Chase and Foreman about themselves. She should work on changing that. "His wife was so nice."

"Yeah, she is," Foreman agreed.

"Cameron, Chase?" Jasper asked.

"I'm an only child," Chase answered.

"I had a sister, but she died when I was a toddler," Cameron said. It was the first time she'd told someone that, besides House. Chase and Foreman exchanged looks, they didn't know Cameron had lost a sister.

"I'm sorry," Jasper said. "How about now? Any of you married, dating somebody?"

"Never been married. Not dating anyone," Chase offered quickly. Jasper smiled at him and he blushed in return.

"Me either," Foreman chimed in. "Cameron's seeing someone, aren't you Cameron?" he teased.

"Oh, who? Is it that oncologist, what's his name, Wilson? He's really cute," Jasper asked. Chase and Foreman both burst out laughing at the idea of Cameron and Wilson together.

"No, actually Dr. Wilson is seeing Dr. Cuddy," Cameron told Jasper, who nodded.

"She's sleeping with me," House said, limping into the conference room and seating himself beside Jasper. "Try not to be jealous. Speaking of which, Cameron can I see you in my office?" Cameron stood and went to his office, House following closely behind her. "Afternoon delight," he said over his shoulder to the three remaining behind.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26 

"House, we're not doing anything like that in here while the three of them sit out there and listen," Cameron said practically as the door closed behind House.

"Oh, come on. Even I'm not that stupid," House said. Cameron shot him a look that clearly said 'oh, really?' "Okay, maybe I am, but I know you're not so relax."

"Then what's up?" Cameron asked, sitting in his big yellow chair.

"Can't a guy just want to spend some quality time with his best girl?" House asked, limping over to sit behind his desk.

"A guy can, you can't," Cameron said. "What's up?"

"Cuddy wants to borrow you for a couple of days next week. The twins will be here by Wednesday and she's got all kinds of stuff to do. I was only half-listening," House waved a hand to indicate that he didn't care, but in fact he did. He was very interested in Cameron's reaction.

"Of course, as long as we don't get a patient. Chase will be gone, and Jasper's only been here a couple of days," Cameron said. House nodded.

"Wilson's very concerned about all the stress this is putting on Cuddy and the baby," House said pointedly, now trying to goad a reaction out of her.

"Of course he is," Cameron replied evenly. "Stress can be dangerous, especially in the first trimester. And I'm sure Dr. Cuddy isn't eating and resting like she should be."

"Can't you just for once stop worrying about everyone else?!" House finally exploded, standing up from his chair and advancing on Cameron. "My God, you just found out Wilson's having a baby, with Cuddy, and that's your only reaction?"

"What sort of reaction should I have?" Cameron asked slowly, looking up as he towered over her. She wasn't sure why House was so upset about this. Was he worried about Wilson not having time for him anymore?

"I don't know, but something more Cameron! You get intimately involved in the lives of patients that you've known for five minutes. Now my best friend and his girlfriend are having a baby and you don't even care!" House shouted. He was sure that Cameron did care, but she was shutting out all those feelings and he wanted to know why.

"I care," Cameron said quietly, looking away. She shifted in her chair, uncomfortable under his stare.

"I know," House replied in much more subdued tone. "Cameron, you can tell me this stuff. I only don't like to talk about my own feelings. I don't mind listening to yours."

"Nice," Cameron said with a small smile. "I'm trying not to think about it too much. They're having a baby, and I'm happy for them. Anything more than that is just torturing myself and it's not good for me."

"Okay," House said. He pulled her up from the chair and hugged her, burying his face in her hair and breathing deeply. Cameron pulled away from with a suspicious look.

"Did you just smell my hair?" she accused.

"What? No," House answered, too quickly.

"You did," Cameron said, pulling out of his arms and placing her hands on her hips. "You smelled my hair. You're checking me for cigarette smoke."

"Just making sure you're sticking to the terms of our bet," House protested.

"Right, because I'm the one who's likely to cheat," Cameron drawled.

"Oh, and you haven't been stopping by and chatting with Dianna after I finish physio?" House threw at her. He had no idea if that was true, but her reaction would tell him a lot.

"No, I haven't" Cameron answered, and House could tell from her tone that she was telling the truth.

"Really?" House asked, now with the lost puppy face. "Fine, you're right. I'm sure if you'd had a cigarette you would have told me. You can't lie worth a dmn."

"Good then. Now, I'm going to say goodbye to Chase. You coming?" House just looked at her and waited for her to realize how ridiculous that question was. She stared at him for a minute or two before finally giving him an exasperated look normally reserved for small children who refuse to tie their own shoes, and then went into the conference room without him.

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House and Cameron sat on the couch at House's place, watching TV. House was watching TV, in actuality Cameron was napping, her head in House's lap and a book lying on her chest. She could really only tolerate so much TV, since most of what was on TV today was just brainless. She preferred a good novel. She was currently reading an Agatha Christie.

House, on the other hand, saw TV as a welcome respite from the whirlwind that was his mind. He often found it difficult to stop thinking, and TV was an effective way to pause that. Usually, he could force whatever he was currently obsessing over to the back of his mind while watching TV. He found this skill especially helpful when dealing with a difficult case. Even the most brilliant mind needed a break now and then.

Tonight, however, he couldn't distract himself with the TV any longer. Ever since he and Cameron had argued Friday afternoon, something had been bothering him. He'd looked at it from every angle he could come up with, and it still didn't make sense to him. Finally, with Cameron's head in his lap, he decided he'd just have to ask her.

"Cameron? Hey, Cameron," House nudged her, waking her. "Need to ask you something." Cameron rubbed her eyes, and looked up at House, expectantly. Now that she was looking at him, he wasn't sure how to ask her. "Why did you give Foreman that biopsy?"

"What?" Cameron asked, confused.

"Foreman, why did you do that biopsy?" House repeated.

"Because, I was his proxy," Cameron said, still confused. That was a year ago, why was he asking now?

"But you knew we could diagnose him another way," House pressed.

"In the time we had left?" Cameron asked. "It didn't matter anyway, it was what Foreman wanted."

"What does that matter?" House asked. "You were the proxy, it was your call. You could have done whatever you wanted."

"No, I couldn't have. The proxy is supposed to make medical decisions for someone when they aren't able. Foreman was able, he was perfectly clear he wanted the biopsy before we put him out. My job as his proxy was to make sure that what happened while he was out was what he wanted, that it was the decision he would have made if he had been able." Cameron looked at House again. She wondered where this was coming from. Suddenly, an awful thought crossed her mind and she quickly sat upright on the couch, twisting to face him. "Why are you questioning me on this now? Is something wrong? Is it your leg?"

"I'm fine," House answered. Now it was his turn to be confused. "Why would you think there's something wrong with me?"

"Because you're testing me. You wanted to see if I'd do the same thing Stacy did if it ever came to something like that," Cameron said. "I wouldn't. What a person chooses to do with their own body is their business, and if that person trusted me enough to put me in charge, then I would do whatever was necessary to make sure that what was done was what they wanted." Cameron finished, flushed. They'd never discussed what had happened to his leg, but Cameron was glad to have told him how she felt. She would never have done that to him. She would have respected his wishes, even if she didn't agree with him and even if it meant losing him.

"Good to know," House said, after a pause. He smirked at the flush on her face. No need to ask her what she thought of Stacy. "But I'm fine."

"Then why are you asking? What are you trying to find out?" Cameron asked. She looked at him intently, and he dropped his gaze, her scrutiny making him uncomfortable.

"I thought maybe you did the biopsy because you didn't trust me to figure it out," House said, edging closer to what he really wanted to talk about. He continued to look away from her.

"Of course I trust you. Do you think I would have told you my life story if I didn't?"

House pondered on that for a bit, glancing at her quickly to check the emotional weather. She was right. He could have very easily used the information she'd given him to make her life miserable, but he hadn't because she had trusted him not to do so. That just made this even more puzzling.

"Then why are you so afraid to talk to me about what you're feeling?" he asked, finally getting out what was really bothering him. He looked back again, this time locking eyes with her. He was surprised to see her grin. "This is funny?"

"From you? Greg House, the master of keeping it to yourself?" Cameron laughed lightly. "Come on, you have to see the irony in this." House gave her an impatient sort of look. Cameron sighed, and now she looked away. "I was afraid."

"Of me?" House asked. "Cameron, you do know I'd never really beat you with my cane?"

"I know. But the last time I tried to talk to you about feelings, you shot me down pretty hard. I wasn't anxious for a repeat performance. And, I was afraid if I got too emotional, you'd decide I wasn't worth the trouble, and you'd leave." Cameron fiddled with the hem of her sweater, feeling exposed and unsure. She finally looked back at House to see him grinning at her. She wiped a tear from her cheek; she hadn't even realized she'd begun to cry. "So this is funny?"

"You're screwed up even worse than Wilson," House said, and Cameron chuckled softly. House got up from the couch, and limped his way across the living room to the hall closet. He opened it, and raised his voice so Cameron could still hear him. "If I was going to let a few tears now and then scare me away, I never would have started this with you," House said as he turned back to the couch. "I even bought pink tissues," and he tossed Cameron a box of what was indeed pink tissues, complete with decorative flowers. She laughed as she took one and used it to dry her eyes. "And for the record, I'm not that easy to get rid of."

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House waited a few minutes after Cameron left the conference room Monday morning to follow her downstairs. Even though they'd talked, he was still worried about her helping Cuddy out. He knew she was purposely avoiding thinking about Cuddy's pregnancy, and he also knew from experience the sort of trouble you could get in when you didn't allow yourself to feel stuff. He smirked; Wilson might suggest he was something of an expert in that field.

House let the elevator doors open in front of him and glanced out before entering the hallway. He could just barely see the shadows of two people in Cuddy's office. Congratulating himself on timing things perfectly, he stepped in to the hallway outside the clinic. He lingered for a few minutes, making sure the clinic was fully staffed at the moment before venturing any closer to Cuddy's radar.

Satisfied that he couldn't possibly get roped into clinic duty right then, he entered the clinic waiting area to get a better view into Cuddy's office. She and Cameron appeared at ease, but appearances can be deceiving and he was anything but a casual observer. Either they'd had a little talk or Cameron really was that good at hiding how she was feeling all of a sudden. Watching carefully, he took in their body language. It was all wrong. Cameron was tense, but only the usual amount of tension with which she carried herself in Cuddy's presence. It was Cuddy who seemed unusually stiff and uncomfortable. House narrowed his eyes, wondering what that was all about.

As he continued to watch the women from a safe distance, the wheels began to turn. Wilson had weaseled his way out of it last week, but he had lied about having lunch with Cuddy. And now Cuddy was uptight and uncomfortable. The chances of those two things being unconnected were pretty slim in House's view. Having reached this conclusion, he studied Cuddy more closely, looking for some sign or clue as to what might be bothering her. She wasn't upset enough for something to be wrong with the baby, and House was certain that was information Wilson would just not have been able to keep to himself.

Moving around the nurse's desk to get a better view of his girls, House took in Cameron's expression. She seemed concerned suddenly. Cuddy had moved so that House was now watching the back of her head, but he noticed that she seemed even stiffer than previously. Watching intently, he made out the slightest of hitches in her shoulders, and then watched as Cameron placed a tentative hand on Cuddy's back. Was she crying?

House had seen all he needed to see. Noting that Cuddy's office door was propped open, he walked to the doors separating her office space from the clinic and slipped inside. As Cameron had noted on many previous occasions, he did have a propensity for sneaking up on people unbeknownst to them. He took full advantage of this unique talent now to stand quietly in her outer office area and try to eavesdrop on their conversation.

Cuddy was crying softly, almost not really crying at all. House knew she prided herself on maintaining control of her emotions at the hospital at all costs. She was a woman, young in her position and could ill afford to be seen as weak. Even hormones, powerful though they were, had only once had this effect on her at work. He could now see Cameron rubbing small circles on Cuddy's back and rolled his eyes, cursing himself for not realizing sooner. No normal person could avoid Cameron's caring and concern. She practically dripped with motherly instincts. Whatever was bothering Cuddy had come out in Cameron's presence, just like it did with their patients.

Cuddy and Cameron both now had their backs to House, and were far too involved in their current situation to notice him. He chanced to get a bit closer and heard Cameron speaking.

"Dr. Cuddy, uh, Lisa, are you okay? Is everything all right with the baby?" Cuddy just nodded, still trying to stop the tears that were sliding down her cheeks. "Well, that's the most important thing right now. As long as you and the baby are both fine, everything else we can work out." House made a face; she really was sickeningly sweet sometimes. Thank God or whoever that she hadn't tried that on him.

"It's Jimmy," Cuddy said quietly, and House tensed, gripping the handle of his cane nearly tight enough to snap it. "He said he didn't want to know if the baby was his or not, that it didn't matter, but I had to know. I had an amnio test done, and now he doesn't, I mean, he won't even discuss it," Cuddy let out in a rush. Most of this was barely comprehensible to Cameron, who knew nothing about Cuddy's IVF treatments, but House jumped to the worst possible conclusion.

"Son of a btch!" he growled, and charged off as quickly as his leg would allow. Cameron and Cuddy both jumped and whirled around to see House striding off down the hall, cane pounding the floor with each step. They looked at each other confused, not exactly certain what he'd heard or where he was going. Recognizing the anger in his walk, they followed.

House was already in the elevator, a good two floors above them by the time Cuddy and Cameron had made it across the hospital lobby. They took to the stairs, and made it to the diagnostics/oncology hall just in time to see House fling Wilson's door open. They rushed down the hall, but not before Wilson had come around the desk to shout at House for barging in without knocking, again, and House had grabbed him by the lapels of his lab coat and shoved him roughly against the wall, then pinned him there with his cane.  
Cameron grabbed House by the right arm and Cuddy by the left, listening in shock as House began shouting at Wilson.

"Just because the baby isn't yours you're going to abandon her! You really are screwed up worse than me! So all that stuff about how you love her, it wasn't any different than any other time. How many women do you have to crush before you get your set of steak knives, Jimmy?" Wilson looked truly frightened. It wasn't often he was at the receiving end of House's anger, and House's anger was not something to be trifled with.

Cameron and Cuddy succeeded in pulling House off of Wilson. Wilson took advantage, and seeing that Cameron and Cuddy were still holding House's arms, he took a swing and connected squarely with House's jaw. House rocked back, and with his cane still raised in his hands, fell backwards and hit his head on the side of Wilson's desk.


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: Hey, sorry about leaving that little cliffie! It honestly wasn't my intention, but I came down with a little bug and haven't been able to post new chaps. So anyway, I'd really like it if people would review. It makes me so happy, especially when I'm not feeling well. (Pathetically begging for sympathy reviews)**

Chapter 27

"Stop squirming," Cameron scolded, as she tried to numb the area above House's right eyebrow for the stitches he would need. With one hand occupied with the syringe and the other holding a compress over his wound she was unable to also hold his head still.

House was agitated, to say the least. He hadn't lost consciousness when he'd hit his head on Wilson's desk, but things had been fuzzy for a minute or so. Luckily for Wilson, it was long enough for Cameron to usher him out of the office while Cuddy tended to House. Cameron had gotten Wilson to the diagnostics office and commanded Foreman not to let the oncologist out of his sight. Foreman and Jasper had overheard the scuffle, and despite the fact that Foreman couldn't really fault Wilson for taking a swing at House, he had no desire to deal with House's mood if an all-out brawl between them ensued.

"House," Cameron reprimanded him again. "If you don't sit still I'm going to start without any anesthetic and I intend to stitch my initials into your forehead. Now stop squirming!"

"I don't need any stitches," House grumbled, but he sat still enough for Cameron to give him the shot he needed.

"Yes, you do," Cameron insisted. She began stitching the wound above his eyebrow. It wasn't overly large, but required five stitches just the same. "I could have gotten a plastic surgeon down here for this."

"Right, because I'm far too handsome to let just any doctor work on this gorgeous face," House quipped. "Besides, chicks dig scars."

"So true," Cameron answered. "Between this and the cane I can barely stop myself from jumping you right now." She finished the last stitch, and took off her gloves. She cleaned the area and covered it with a small bandage. She then leaned forward and kissed House's eyebrow ever so gently.

"Told you," House gloated. "Chicks can't resist the scars." He heaved himself off the table in Exam Room 2, where Cuddy had taken him once he was able to walk without tipping over. Grabbing his cane, he made for the door before Cameron put a restraining hand on his arm.

"Where are you going? Looking to start round 2 already?" Cameron asked.

"I thought you hated sports metaphors?" House asked her. She held firmly onto his arm. House made an exasperated face. "I'm not going to hurt him."

"Sure. I know you just intended to start a pillow fight when you pinned him to the wall with your cane," Cameron chided. "House, I don't know exactly what's going on, but what I do know is it's between Jimmy and Lisa. They're in her office right now. Besides, if you're right, and I don't think you are, Lisa should have the first crack at him."

House looked at her thoughtfully, and then nodded. He sat down on the rolling chair and began tapping his cane on the floor. He'd wait.

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Wilson and Cuddy sat opposite each other in Cuddy's office. The door was locked and the blinds drawn to ensure their privacy. Wilson stared at the floor between his feet while Cuddy stared intently at the top of his head. Neither was willing to speak first, and the tension was palpable. Finally, exasperated and near tears again, Cuddy dislodged the pillow from behind her back and threw it at him.

Struck by a foreign object for the second time in less than an hour, the pillow albeit much softer than House's cane, Wilson snapped. He half expected this sort of behavior from House, but Cuddy?

"How could you do it, Lisa?" Wilson asked, his voice thick with emotion.

"How could I?" Cuddy gasped. "You're angry with me? That's unbelievable. You really have been friends with House for too long."

"Oh give me a break," Wilson retorted, standing up and gesturing wildly. "You deliberately went behind my back and had that amnio test after I told you I didn't care. Do you really think so little of me? Did you think I wasn't serious?"

"That had nothing to do with it, and you know it!" Cuddy shouted, also standing. "It may have escaped your attention, James, but I am the one who is pregnant here. And if I decide that I want to know who the biological father of my child is, then I have every right to find out!"

Wilson opened his mouth to speak, but then stopped. He took a deep breath, and released it while running his hand through his hair and then across the back of his neck. He paced in a small circle and visibly composed himself before replying.

"Fine. You're right. You have every right to know who the father of your baby is. But I didn't want to know. We discussed it, and I made my decision quite clear. To have you come to me just days later and announce that you have the amnio results and we need to talk is just throwing it in my face that you don't trust me." Wilson paused in his speech, used to having such ridiculous conversations about overstepping boundaries with House. He fully expected to be able to continue.

Cuddy, however, was not House. While House might have patiently, or impatiently, waited for Wilson to finish his tirade before answering with some cryptic and only have decipherable remark, Cuddy jumped in with both feet.

"How does this show that I don't trust you? That doesn't even make sense," Cuddy demanded.

"You don't trust me to stand by you. You thought as soon as I found out the baby wasn't mine, that I'd run," Wilson exclaimed, now pacing between Cuddy's desk and the door.

"The baby is yours, you stupid jerk!" Cuddy screamed.

Wilson stopped, stunned. He looked at Cuddy, and Cuddy looked back. They stared at each other for the longest moment of Cuddy's life before Wilson charged across the room and grabbed her. He pulled her into arms and kissed her frantically. She kissed him back, unable to remember the last time she felt so relieved and happy and almost out control. They slid to the floor and made love with an abandon that neither had ever experienced. It was as though the rest of the world simply ceased to exist, and only they were left to completely fill the universe with their pleasure.

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Patience is a virtue, or so the saying goes. Unfortunately, it wasn't one of House's. After waiting a mere 15 minutes in the clinic exam room, he could sit no longer. He artfully gave Cameron the slip, claiming a fierce need to use the Men's room once they'd entered the hallway, and doubled back to check on Cuddy and Wilson.

House stood as quietly as possible in the area just outside Cuddy's office. The blinds were drawn, and he suspected the door was locked as well. That wasn't a problem, of course, it would just make his entrance less dramatic. He'd long ago stolen Cuddy's keys to make himself a copy, but unlocking the door would make some noise and they'd know he was coming too soon. House decided a little reconnaissance was in order. He edged closer to the door, nearly pressing his ear against the glass to try to hear what was going on.

For two people who were theoretically breaking up, they were certainly quiet enough. Frustrated, House moved the other side of the door, hoping the minuscule gap between the door and the frame would permit some yet unheard sound to leak out.

After another minute or two of intense concentration with no pay off, House reached into his wallet and removed his key to Cuddy's office. He had almost placed it in the lock when he heard something. Tilting his head to one side, he listened harder. It could have been crying. Were they both still in there? Was Cuddy alone?

Finally deciding he could wait no longer, House slid the key into the lock and was about to turn it when he heard the noise again, slightly louder. It could be crying, but that wasn't quite right. Was it, moaning? Confused, House squinted in concentration when the noise came for a third time, decidedly louder and now accompanied by another, lower sound.

As the noises became louder and more frequent, House suddenly cringed in disgust and jerked himself away from the door. He recognized those voices. Well, one of them anyway. And his all too eager imagination easily conjured up some mental images to supply him with the owner of the second voice.

Shuddering in horror at what he'd almost walked in on, he glided his key out of the lock and escaped from Cuddy's office area into the clinic, glad that he was able to keep down his breakfast.

It wasn't until he was stretched out in the big yellow chair in his office and was listening to Cameron's Gregorian chanting, the most non-sexual music he could find on short notice, that he realized what he'd just heard meant one of two things. Either the baby was Wilson's, or it wasn't but Wilson was staying with Cuddy anyway. In either case, it looked like House had just assaulted his best friend of nearly ten years for no good reason other than he couldn't imagine him being trustworthy.

"What's wrong?" Cameron asked, entering from the conference room upon hearing the chanting. "You hate this stuff. And, you look a little sick. Are you nauseous? Maybe you have a concussion." Now concerned, she placed the files she had been carrying on his desk and dropped to her knees in order to check his eyes.

"I screwed up," House said, placing a hand on her wrist to stop her examination.

"What do you mean?"

"Wilson. I screwed up. He's down there with Cuddy doing some screwing of his own," House snarked.

"Ew," Cameron supplied.

"Yeah. Good thing I heard them first, I almost got the live show. It doesn't matter. If they're doing that, it means he's staying, whether the baby's his or not. I was wrong. I didn't think she should trust him and she obviously should have. Damn, Quig was right, I really don't trust anybody," House sighed, leaning back in the chair and staring to the ceiling.

"So fix it," Cameron offered.

"Trying to fix me again?"

"No, I'm telling you to do it yourself. Apologize to Wilson and then show somebody that you trust them. It's not as hard as you think. Hey, if you can be trustworthy, there has to be somebody else on earth who can be trustworthy," Cameron said lightly, but her point was made.

House just nodded at her. That was easy for her to say. As he watched her gather up her files and go back to the conference room, a thought occurred to him. Maybe it wasn't so easy for her either. He thought about all she had been through in her past. Her parents, the drugs, the abortion, a dead husband. And she still managed to open herself up to him and trust him. Him. If she could do that, maybe he could too.

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"I can't believe this. My first day in NICU, and Wilson punches House out. I've been waiting three years for him to snap, and he had to wait until my first day out of the department?" Chase whined to Foreman and Cameron at lunch. "I mean, no offense Cameron, but I don't know how Wilson hasn't done it before."

"Well, there's got to be more than a little something wrong with Wilson for him to be friends with House for so long," Foreman said. "Sorry, Cameron, no offense."

"Would this be easier if I just left? Then you wouldn't have to pretend that you care if you hurt my feelings," Cameron snarled, roughly grabbing her tray of food and storming out of the cafeteria. Chase and Foreman exchanged a glance, but decided to leave her alone.

"She must have known she'd be hearing that sort of stuff when she started going out with House," Foreman said. "Chase?"

Chase wasn't listening. He was busy watching as Jasper made her way through the cafeteria line. Foreman just shook his head. This was so unlike Chase. He wasn't exactly suave, but he didn't normally have trouble just plain talking to a woman. Foreman liked Chase, he really did, but sometimes it was just too easy to screw with him. It was one of the few things that Foreman really couldn't fault House for.

"Jasper!" Foreman called to her. "Come and join us." Chase shot Foreman a murderous glare before grabbing his napkin and wiping his face frantically to make sure none of his lunch was still on it.

"Hey, thanks guys. God, I hate walking through the cafeteria line alone, it's just like high school," Jasper said as she sat down and opened her orange juice container.

"Don't worry, working for House means you always get a seat at the cool kids table," Chase said, and then grimaced as he realized how incredibly corny that was. What the blazes was wrong with him anyway? He was never like this around women, not even Cameron. Jasper smiled at him, but he was convinced she was just being nice. He decided it would better to get out of there before he did anything else embarrassing.

"I've got to get back," Chase said, standing. He leaned his hand on the table as he pushed back his chair, and in doing so flipped his cafeteria tray over, spilling the last inch of his split pea soup into his stomach and down the front of his pants. So much for not embarrassing myself, he thought. Foreman tried not to laugh as Chase scrambled away from the table without a word.

"Is he always so accident prone?" Jasper asked Foreman.

"Only when he's the presence of a certain cardiologist I know," Foreman remarked. Jasper smiled down at her tuna salad and blushed.

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"I'm ready to go," Cameron announced as she flopped herself into House's yellow chair. House checked his watch. 6pm. He stood from his desk and limped to the balcony door. He looked outside for a minute and then turned back to Cameron.

"Sorry, can't go yet," he said and sat back down.

"What are you up to?" Cameron asked cautiously.

"Me? Up to something?" House replied. Cameron gave him one of her looks, and he rolled his eyes. "If I tell you, you'll only try to talk me out of it. Then you'll get mad when I tell you to leave me alone, and yell at me about how its unethical and a little bit illegal, and then we'll fight. Then I'll have to do something romantic to make up for it. Couldn't we skip all that stuff?" While speaking, House had taken out his keys and removed one from the ring. "Go to my place, pretend all that stuff happened, and then when I get home, we'll have make-up sex. Okay?"

Cameron looked at him with a mixture of surprise and annoyance. The annoyance was obvious, but House wasn't sure he followed the surprised.

"You're giving me the key to your apartment?" Cameron asked.

"Lending you the key," House corrected.

"Aren't you afraid I'll go through all your stuff? Find your little black book and call all your old girlfriends and hookers?"

"Nope," House answered.

"And why not?"

"You've already met all my old girlfriends. And if you talk to Rosalinda, ask her for instructions on this thing she used to do with a set of jumper cables…"

"Enough," Cameron interrupted, now just annoyed again. She wondered if he would ever take this seriously.

"I trust you," House said.

"To borrow your house key for an hour?" Cameron asked.

"It's a start."


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28 

His clandestine mission completed, House climbed onto this motorcycle and made his way home. Pulling up to the building, he paused to look at the soft lamplight glowing through his living room window. It had been nearly a year since he'd seen a light on at house upon coming home. That had been when Wilson had stayed with him before his last divorce. The light looked different now, although he couldn't quite put his finger on why.

Shaking his head, House got off the bike, removed his helmet and went to the door. He opened the door and some spicy-sweet scent wafted over him and into the hall. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. Whatever it was smelled wonderful and as he stepped inside and closed the door behind him it dawned on him. The light looked warmer from outside.

"Hey." A voice interrupted his realization, and he saw Cameron lying on the couch. Her head was propped up on a pillow, the reading lamp on behind her, her glasses perched on her nose and a book in hand. She looked comfortable and totally in place, like she'd always been there.

"Damn," House said, dropping his bag on the floor.

"What's wrong?" Cameron asked.

"I was hoping you'd pull a Julia Roberts from 'Pretty Woman' and have nothing on but a tie," House quipped, now removing his leather jacket and heading to the closet.

"You don't wear ties," Cameron responded, practically. "Wilson though, he always loves a new tie…" she let her voice trail off, teasing him. House, on his way to the closet, froze. He looked at her. Wilson would have recognized that look, having seen it one time he hinted he might be interested in Cameron.

"What?" Cameron asked. "Your hooker jokes are funny but I can't make one little comment about someone?"

"My hooker jokes have the benefit of being true," House said.

"And what makes you think mine don't?" Cameron asked. House gave her the look again. Cameron rolled her eyes. "Fine, you win. I don't like Wilson, never have, never will, the very idea makes me nauseous. You're the only man for me, Gregory House. Happy?"

House nodded, then continued to the closet and flung his jacket inside. Cameron huffed her exasperation at him, and got up from the couch, walked to the closet, picked up his jacket and put it on a hanger. House just smirked at her.

"I'll be happy if that smell is something you cooked for dinner. I'm starving," House said, going to nose around in the kitchen.

"Well, if you weren't so busy doing whatever unethical and illegal thing you were doing that you couldn't tell me about, you could have been home earlier and had dinner at a more reasonable hour," Cameron said. She reached into the oven and took out a plate that she had been keeping warm for him.

House gave her a look to signify he still wasn't telling her anything, and she sighed. She carried the plate into the living room, placed it on the coffee table and turned the TV on for him. She shifted over on the couch so he could sit, and then handed him the remote. While he flicked through his TiVo listings, Cameron watched him. He finally settled on something and began eating. Cameron continued watching. Finally, he could take no more.

"What?"

"What, what?"

"You're staring at me while I eat. It's creepy," House said.

"When you said I'd already met all your old girlfriends, you were kidding, right?" Cameron asked.

"Nope," House answered.

"But I've only met Stacy. You don't honestly expect me to believe that you didn't have a girlfriend until you were forty."

"No, I don't. You've already met my other old girlfriend, you just don't know that she's my old girlfriend," House answered, without really answering.

"Wait, so you've only had two girlfriends, and I already know the other one?" Cameron asked. "There's no way you've only had two girlfriends."

"Why?"

Cameron looked at him in disbelief. Wow, how damaged was he? She could understand his not having a girlfriend since the infarction. The huge 'Leave Me Alone' sign in flashing neon that followed him around would have scared off most women. But before? A gorgeous, athletic, brilliant, world-famous doctor? The eyes alone should have scored him more women than even he could handle.

"You're gorgeous, brilliant, a world-famous, respected doctor. Your eyes alone would have attracted plenty of women. And you certainly don't behave like someone who's lacking in experience," Cameron said, blushing slightly.

"I didn't say I haven't had lots of sex," House said. "I said I've only had two girlfriends before you. Girlfriend implies some sort of commitment, time spent together, yadda, yadda."

"Okay," Cameron nodded. "I buy that. So, who is she?"

House put down his fork and glared at her. Seriously, she wanted to play this game? How could she not know this would end badly? And how stupid was he for letting it slip in the first place? He really should be more careful when he talked to her. If she would just stop making him feel so damned comfortable.

"Does it matter?" House asked.

"No, but it is interesting," Cameron replied.

"Cuddy," House said, and waited for the screaming.

"Lisa Cuddy?" Cameron paused to let this sink in. House watched her carefully. "Looks like you were wrong."

"About?" House asked.

"You always said Cuddy would bite her partner's head off after mating," Cameron said and House grinned at her. She smiled back.

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Tuesday came and went, and Wednesday the conjoined twins arrived at the hospital. House and Cameron had barely seen each other; Cuddy had been keeping Cameron so busy in the administrative offices. Because Wilson was still not speaking to House and they had no case at the moment, Jasper and Foreman were spending the day trying to avoid House's insanity.

But, after completing all of their clinic hours for the week, neither could find a reasonable excuse to be out of the diagnostics department. Jasper had taken over sorting the mail while Cameron was helping Cuddy, so she at least had something to occupy herself with. Foreman gathered up seven or eight medical journals and spread them across the conference table, hoping it would make him look busy.

House entered the conference room from his office, a look of such total boredom on his face that it was almost possible for Foreman to feel bad for him. Almost. House sat at the conference table across from Foreman and put his cane on the table, angling it carefully to block the pages Foreman was reading. Foreman rolled his eyes in frustration.

"So, here's the plan. I'll go downstairs to the clinic and randomly inject people with different drugs. You guys will have to figure out who I injected and with what. Sound like fun?"

"That's hardly fair to Jasper, I already know your favorite cocktail, colchicine and insulin. Remember?" Foreman commented smartly.

Jasper looked at the back of House's head in horror. She'd heard plenty about him over the past few days, but mostly it was about his attitude, his demeanor, his lack of any sort of bedside manor, how much he hated clinic duty. She'd yet to hear about any of his more outrageous schemes and plots. She knew the nurses were afraid of him, and since that was where she had heard most of the gossip, she supposed she shouldn't be surprised. They probably didn't know half of the stuff he pulled.

"If you're bored, there are about a dozen referrals here. Maybe we could see a patient?" Jasper asked, the sarcasm not completely erased from her voice.

"You're sassing me already? Sorry, no backtalk until you're in your second year, or unless I'm about to kill someone. Even then, keep it to a minimum." House said. Foreman smirked and crossed his arms, thinking this could be entertaining. Jasper was nothing like Chase or Cameron. She wasn't one to just quietly take his abuse.

"Not backtalk, just suggesting that maybe we could take a case. There's an attorney here, three different doctors have diagnosed him with the flu, but he still feels sick. They tested him for TB, it was negative and the first doctor gave him a chest x-ray, which was normal." Jasper read from the letter requesting a consult.

House opened his mouth to snark at her, but closed it again and tilted his head slightly. He stared intensely at the coffee pot for a moment, and then nodded. "Get him in here," he ordered, then stood and limped back to his office.

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House had Jasper get a new chest X-ray for their patient before his appointment. He told Jasper and Foreman that he would see the patient in his office after his physio appointment. Foreman looked at House in amazement. House stared back at him, waiting for the comment, but none came. House nodded and limped out of the conference room to meet Dianna for his hour of torture.

"House never volunteers to see a patient. What's so special about this guy?" Foreman wondered.

"I have no idea," Jasper answered. "But I am interested. I'm due in the clinic. Do you want to join Chase and me for lunch later?"

"Sure," Foreman grinned. Lunch with Chase and Jasper was usually entertaining.

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House climbed off the treadmill and glared at Dianna. She was just so damned unflappable. He'd spent weeks throwing his best stuff at her and nothing. It was starting to piss him off. And that was so wrong, because he was supposed to be the one getting to her.

He had to admit, if only to himself, that his leg didn't hurt as much as he'd thought it would. Maybe this physio stuff wasn't complete crap. She was smiling at him. Smugly, he thought. He was going to get under her skin, somehow. It was only a matter of time.

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House limped into his office, where his new patient sat waiting. House crossed the room, but rather than introducing himself to the man, he made an impatient give-it-to-me gesture.

"X-ray," he barked. The patient, a man about House's age but slightly less aged looking, handed him a folder. House withdrew the x-ray form the folder and held it up. After glancing at it for barely 20 seconds, he put it back in the folder and turned to the patient.

"So you're a lawyer," House said, sitting behind the desk and the patient nodded. "I've got a little thing I need done, and I'd rather not have the hospital attorneys do it. Actually, I'd rather they not know about it. Think you can handle that?" House picked up a file of his own from his desk and tossed it to the patient. The man looked at it briefly and nodded his assent to House. "Great. Okay, now for the fun. In about five minutes, two insanely young doctors are going to come in here. I want you to give them this. Do NOT let them look at your x-ray." House picked up a pad from his desk and began scribbling on it. "Tell them whoever figures it out first from just this clue not only gets to cure you, but also gets my undying respect and admiration."

The patient looked at House, a bit iffy. House supposed he should at least tell the guy he wasn't dying. Wouldn't want him to screw up that paperwork.

"Don't worry, you're going to be fine. It's completely curable. Won't even hurt." At this House stood up from behind his desk and extended his hand. "Greg House."

"Patrick Murphy," the patient said, and shook House's hand.

"Excellent," House said. "Starting the timer now. Make sure you write down who figures it out and when, I want to see how long it takes." And he walked out without looking back.

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House and Cameron spent a quiet evening at home that Thursday night. Cameron got the feeling House wanted to tell her something all night, but he never did bring it up. She assumed it had something to do with whatever illegal shenanigans he'd been up to earlier in the week, and finally decided she was probably better off not knowing.

Friday morning Cameron went straight to Cuddy's office, without even stopping in the conference room. House also skipped the diagnostics department. He had an early therapy session with Quig, and for once in his life he didn't want to be late.

"Need some advice," House said by way of announcing himself in Quig's office.

"Advice. Do I do that?" Quig asked. "What's up?"

"Differential diagnosis. Fear of emotional connection, but with obvious feelings of love," House said, settling himself in one of Quig's leather chairs.

"I don't get the rest of your symptoms?" Quig asked.

"What rest of my symptoms?" House retorted, pretending to be insulted. "Patient is a thirty something immunologist who I believe to be madly in love with me."

"You want me to diagnose Dr. Cameron," Quig said. "Well, I do love a challenge. And it's always fun to diagnose someone with mental illness when I've never actually had a conversation with him or her. Do I get extra points if it's something that requires medication?"

House sighed. Quig really was going to make him do this the hard way.

"Okay, fine. We'll do it your way. But just so you know, my way is more fun," House whined.

"Of course," Quig responded. "What's the problem?"

"Cameron's afraid of me," House said.

"Well, you are kind of scary," Quig replied.

"Ha," House said. "She's afraid to talk to me about stuff. Relationship stuff."

"And why do you think that is?" Quig asked.

"God, do you get a bonus every time you ask that?" House said, rolling his eyes. "I already know why."

"Okay. Pretend I'm stupid and explain it to me," Quig said.

"We went on a date," House said. Quig raised an eyebrow. House made a face; he was getting there. "When she first came to work here, we went on a date. Well, technically she forced me into a date, but that's really another story. She said she only had one shot with me and she wanted to know how I felt about her. And I may have been somewhat blunt in hazarding an observation that she only liked me because I was damaged and that was the sort of man she liked. Not that you could blame me, what with the dead husband and all. So, now she's afraid to talk to me about that kind of stuff."

"Okay. Getting the picture. And can I say, you're not looking so good in it. Well, for starters, do you find it at all unusual that you've been seeing her and sleeping with her for a few months now and you still don't call her by her first name? You do know her first name, don't you?" Quig asked.

"She doesn't call me by my first name either." House answered. "And yes, I know hers and she knows mine. I even know her middle name, it's … I'm not allowed to say. But it's really bad." House grinned.

"House, you can be physically intimate with someone and not actually have an intimacy with that person. The very fact that you and Dr. Cameron haven't progressed onto a first-name basis suggests that you're both a little afraid of emotional commitment. Maybe a small gesture on your part would be a good start." Quig suggested. "Say, calling her Allison."

House nodded. He could do that.


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29 

House was sitting in his office, twirling his cane and musing about what Quig had said, when Patrick Murphy walked in.

"You don't knock?" House asked.

"Glass walls. I can see you're not busy," Murphy replied. He tossed a file on House's desk and sat across from him.

"On the contrary," House retorted. "I'm pondering the origins of the universe. What's that?"

"Your paperwork," Murphy answered.

"That was quick. Are you sure you did it right?" House answered.

"Pretty sure. You might want to, I don't know, PAY a lawyer to look at it though," Murphy said sarcastically.

"Sure," House said. "So, are you still waiting for treatment?"

"No, actually. That's the other reason I stopped by. I was asked to give you this." Murphy reached into his pocket, pulled out the piece of paper House had given him yesterday and handed it to House across the desk.

House glanced at it and grinned broadly. Underneath the simple riddle he'd penned was a signature and a post script.

_Dr. Michael Jasper – 8 minutes_

_Next time how about a challenge?_

"Under ten minutes. She also talked me into quitting smoking. How did you know?" Murphy asked, standing to leave.

"Chest x-ray," House said. "I guess next time I'll have to be a little more creative. Maybe a scavenger hunt?" Murphy just shook his head and left. He passed a deliveryman on his way out. The deliveryman stopped and knocked on the open door.

"I've got a delivery for a Dr. House from Princeton Photoshop," he said.

"What a coincidence, I'm a Dr. House," House said. The deliveryman looked momentarily confused. He stepped forward and handed a House a package. He held out a clipboard, which House signed. The deliveryman left and House placed the package with the file that Murphy had dropped off.

"I love it when a plan comes together," House said.

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Foreman sat in his apartment, deciding what to pack for his trip to visit his brother's family. He'd already rejected three suits, deciding they were too formal. He'd laid out four sets of slacks and sweaters for dinner, but couldn't decide which one to pack. He thought he might be able to narrow it down to two. He needed to pack more casual stuff for the rest of the weekend, but he really didn't have much. Most of his casual clothes were left over from college, and they just didn't seem appropriate.

Foreman grinned and shook his head. He was spending Thanksgiving with his brother, his wife and two small children. None of them would care what he was wearing. He reached into the back of his closet and pulled out a box containing some old clothes. He pulled a pair of jeans, his favorite pair of jeans, out of the box and smiled.

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Chase smiled awkwardly and pulled out a chair for Jasper. He'd finally managed to ask her out for a drink without choking on his own tongue. They'd gone to a bar Chase knew; he figured he'd feel more comfortable there. And, he thought to himself, he needed all the help he could get feeling comfortable around her. It was weird, really. He usually wasn't this nervous around women. There was just something different about her that made him feel like he was twelve years old again, about to get his first kiss.

Jasper sat down and took a deep breath. She had been stunned when Foreman had suggested to her that Chase liked her. She knew she was overweight, and she was okay with it. It had taken a lot of years, but she was comfortable with who she was. One of the most unfortunate side effects of her size was that she'd never really dated much. She'd gone on lots of first dates in college, and ended up with tons of friends. When she met Chase, she'd just assumed that he was shy and naturally awkward. She'd been amazed by the gossip she'd heard from the nurses about his reputation. It seemed so different than the way she'd seen him act. Finding out she was the reason he acted differently was unexpected. But certainly not unpleasant.

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Wilson sat in the overstuffed chair in Cuddy's bedroom, watching her sleep. She was quite possibly the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. He just couldn't get over how much his life had changed in just a few months. He was in a new relationship, one that wasn't based on need. He was going to be a father. It was the sort of life he'd longed for. Sometimes it was almost scary to him how easily it had all fallen into place. Probably it was a product of his past, but he couldn't help but wonder sometimes if it could fall apart just as easily. He watched Lisa shift in her sleep, the gentle curve of her spine disappearing beneath a rumple of sheets. He grinned, soon enough she'd have to get used to not sleeping on her stomach.

Cuddy dreamed of Jimmy and House and Allison. They were at a park, in the fall. The air was crisp and smelled like burning leaves. The sky was pale and blue, the sun bright but too weak to take the chill out of the air. She and Jimmy were walking hand in hand, a little boy of four or five years running a few yards ahead. Closely following him was a little girl; she was maybe three. Her chestnut hair bounced as she ran to try to catch the little boy. House and Allison walked beside them, the leaves crunching beneath their feet and House's cane, a dog pulling the leash in Allison's hand. Cuddy shifted in her sleep, a slight smile crossing her face. She loved this dream. This dream where she and all the people she cared about were at peace and happy.

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Cameron sat in her apartment, alone. It had been a long and challenging week at work for her, but she had enjoyed herself. Working for House was challenging, but working with Cuddy had been equally challenging. Cameron had always respected Cuddy, but she'd truly learned this past week exactly how hard Cuddy had to work to keep that respect. She smiled as she thought about the chance she'd been given. It was tempting. But as soon as she became excited about it, one thought would intrude and stop her in her tracks. She dearly wished she could ask House, but she really wasn't sure she wanted to hear his opinion. And really, she knew this was a decision she needed to make entirely on her own.

The phone rang, derailing her train of thought. She picked up the cordless and pressed talk.

"Hello?"

"Allison. Want to join me for dinner?" asked the deep, gravelly voice on the phone.

"Who is this?" Cameron asked back.

"Wow, way to stroke a guy's ego," the voice said.

"House?" Cameron asked. Normally recognizing his voice wouldn't be a problem, but he'd called her Allison.

"No, Greg. I think its Greg. That's what it says on paycheck," House said. "So, dinner?"

"Sure, Greg," Cameron said. "Chinese or pizza?"

"I made reservations. We're taking the bike; so don't wear a skirt. And nothing too dressy. I'll be there in twenty minutes." The phone clicked in Cameron's ear. Greg and Allison, huh?

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Pulling into the parking lot at PPTH, House parked his motorcycle in the handicapped spot closest to the elevator. He and Cameron climbed off and Cameron handed him the helmet. While House latched the helmet onto the left handlebar, Cameron unclipped his cane from the holder and handed it to him. It was a routine they'd gone through many times in the past few months.

House limped two or three steps ahead of her, knowing that she would first run her fingers through her hair before entering the hospital. She would catch up by the time the elevator doors opened. Just as usual, Cameron walked quickly up behind him as the now familiar ding sounded and the elevator doors opened.

Cameron waited, knowing that if she tried to get on first House would likely trip her or try to block her with his cane. House waited, knowing that if he went first Cameron would roll her eyes and mutter just loudly enough for him to hear about how chivalry really was dead. The doors began to close, and House stuck out his cane to stop them. Cameron ducked underneath and got on the elevator first, House closed behind. They both grinned as they watched the numbers on the display light up.

"So, Greg," Cameron said, stressing the Greg to mock him ever so slightly, "I think we should try to keep things professional at the office."

"Are you mocking me, Allison?" House asked.

"Duh, Greg," Cameron replied. She smiled to herself. Did he ever forget anything? House grinned at the floor. Women really are like elephants, he thought, they never forget. They glanced at each other, neither realizing how closely their thoughts mirrored each other, or that despite the fact that House had been condescending and Cameron humiliated, they both seemed to remember it fondly.

The elevator dinged again as the doors opened to the hospital lobby. Like your typical Monday morning, the lobby area was buzzing with activity. House groaned as he saw the throng of people in the clinic waiting area. How could Cuddy be so cruel as to purposely schedule his clinic hours for Monday morning? He was beginning to think she really didn't like him.

"House," Cuddy's voice called from across the lobby, and he cringed. Cameron poked him sharply in the ribs. She smiled as Cuddy approached, and Cuddy smiled briefly back. It took Cameron only a moment to recognize that Cuddy was extremely tense. "Got a case for you."

"Good morning to you too, Dr. Cuddy. Why yes, I had a lovely weekend, and thank you so much for asking," House said in a sickening, falsely sweet voice, all the while backing toward the set of elevators that would lead to his escape.

"House, I'm serious. Tanita and Joyanna Ramos, 22 months old," but here Cuddy was interrupted.

"No, no, no, no, no. Those are your twins. They're supposed to cause no extra work for me, remember?" House protested.

"Right. Well, I'll just tell the dozen surgeons and doctors who have flown here from all over the world never mind, we were just joshing," Cuddy snapped. "This surgery has to take place in the next three days, or it won't be happening at all. I'm not doing that to this family." She shoved the file at him. He shoved it back at her.

"Greg," Cameron said quietly, with a pleading look.

"Give it to me," House said, rolling his eyes as he snatched the file away from Cuddy. "I'm not giving in to the eyes for another month," he told Cameron, pushing the button for the elevator. Cameron turned and gave Cuddy a quick hug. The elevator doors opened and House stepped in. "Coming?" he shouted at Cameron.

House limped into his office and dropped his bag on the floor. Cameron had gone to the conference room to start coffee. Jasper and Foreman were already waiting.

"Cameron, you staying?" Foreman asked.

"Yes, we have a case," Cameron answered. She was surprised to see that coffee had already been made. She knew Foreman wouldn't do it unless ordered, so she assumed Jasper had done so. Cameron smiled sadly as she noticed House's mail sorted neatly on the desk in the corner. How quickly one could be replaced, she thought.

"First she steals my girlfriend," House shouted as he burst into the conference room. Jasper barely jumped, an improvement. The rude comments, sexual innuendos and outright yelling she could take. The sneaking up on people got her every time, though. "Then she saddles me with conjoined twins. Lisa Cuddy is the spawn of Satan. Make a note."

He tossed his cane onto the table and wrote some symptoms on the board.

Vomiting Seizure Excessive crying

"What's excessive crying for a two year old? I didn't know they ever stopped crying," House snarked. "What have they got?"

"They don't have anything, only Joyanna is sick. Tanita has no symptoms," Cameron said, reading the file.

"She will," House said. "Get me blood and lots of it." Jasper and Foreman left to get started on what they were sure would be an insane amount of tests. Cameron remained behind. House was lost in thought, and only noticed that she was still in the room when she coughed to get his attention.

"Penny for your thoughts," she said.

"Just calculating my chances now that Britney split with K-Fed," House answered.

"Hmm, they're getting better than your chances of seeing any action tonight every second," Cameron replied. House grinned. "This poor family, they've been through so much already."

"We'll figure it out, we always do," House said. Cameron just nodded and left to join Jasper and Foreman, leaving House to his thoughts.


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter 30 

House sat in his office, waiting for one of his team to return. He was surprised to see Chase enter the office and sit down.

"Missed me that much?" House asked.

"The girls are in the NICU," Chase explained. "The family felt more comfortable with them in a setting more geared to younger patients and so Cuddy assigned them to me." Chase paused. "Tanita's not getting sick."

"It's only been a few hours," House responded.

"No, it's been a few days. Joyanna was showing symptoms when they arrived, we just didn't know it then. She was already crying excessively and having difficulty speaking."

"She's 22 months old," House retorted. "Not exactly the age for witty repartee."

"House. She couldn't even say Mama. That's pretty basic, and something she's been doing for nearly a year. Her mother says the crying is definitely different. If anything, Tanita is usually the fussy one," Chase sighed heavily. He'd wanted to get away from House, but he was beginning to question whether he was sufficiently prepared for the emotional toll dying babies took on a man.

"How long have they been here?" House asked.

"Since Wednesday," Chase answered. House stood, grabbing his cane off the arm of his chair, and limped toward the lab, where he found Cameron, Jasper and Foreman hunched over various microscopes and machines.

"Stop what you're doing," House ordered.

"House, we haven't even finished half the tests," Cameron replied. "We're only through the obvious stuff, but considering where they're from it could be any one of literally dozens of things."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, but the other one isn't sick," House said.

"It's only been a few hours," Foreman reasoned. "Even the most virulent infection could take hours to present symptoms in a new patient."

"Except Chase here has discovered that the first one's been sick for days," House said.

"And there's no way that only one of a set of conjoined twins to be exposed to any infectious disease," Jasper interrupted.

"Unless they're unhooking their livers at night to party," House offered. "Even if only one of them was exposed, their faces are inches apart. They'd be breathing it on each other literally with every breath."

"And since they're sharing blood vessels, they're also sharing a blood supply. Even if one of them had a compromised immune system, they'd be sharing the antibodies to fight off the infection through their common blood vessels," Cameron noted.

"There's no way this is infectious," House said. "So stop wasting your time with all these tests and get her into an MRI." House turned and limped out of the lab without waiting for a response.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Wilson entered his office to find a gift wrapped box in the center of his desk. Coming in to his office to find things moved or taken wasn't unusual for Wilson. House had long ago discovered a way into virtually every locked space in the hospital. But finding something left for him, besides a mess, was definitely new.

Certain it had to be from House, unless he'd taught Cameron how to break into his office, Wilson looked at the present with trepidation. They hadn't spoken since House had tried to strangle him and Wilson had punched him out, and a gift made Wilson nervous. Dropping his briefcase on the floor and hanging his jacket, he eyed the gift from a distance. Quietly approaching the desk, he gingerly lifted the box to his ear to check for ticking. Convinced it wouldn't explode; Wilson removed the wrapping and found two boxes.

He opened the first box. Inside was a framed ultrasound photo. Wilson was stunned. It was an image he knew well. He and Cuddy had spent hours staring at it since her appointment the previous week. Lifting the frame from the box, Wilson noticed an envelope underneath. He opened it and withdrew a plain white card.

_Jimmy,  
Since you won't be winning the steak knives._

_House_

_P.S. Oh, and here's a picture of the parasite too_.

Confused, Wilson shifted his gaze to the second box. Chuckling in disbelief, he opened it to find a brand new set of steak knives.

As Wilson settled the photo of his offspring on his desk, there was a knock at the door. He called a 'come in', expecting one his staff. His jaw nearly dropped when House entered.

"Hey," House said.

"Did you just knock on my door?" Wilson asked, stunned. "And then wait for me to say come in?"

"Well, I wanted to make sure you and Cuddy weren't in here in a compromising position," House explained, a devilish look about him. "I would certainly hate to have knowledge of that happening here in the hospital."

"How did you…Never mind, I don't want to know," Wilson said, shaking his head and blushing lightly.

"So, you got your present," House stated, looking at the frame on Wilson's desk.

"Yes, thank you. I'm a little disturbed that you were able to get a copy of the ultrasound photo. I probably don't want to know about that either, huh?" Wilson asked.

"Probably not," House agreed. He looked around the office a bit, uncomfortable. He knew he should apologize, but making those words come out of his mouth when he really meant them was just so hard. "Look, Jimmy," he began, scratching his thumb across his forehead.

"You don't have to say it. You might have gone about it in a nicer way, but what you said certainly wasn't without foundation. You bought me a gift; you obviously spent a great deal of time sneaking around and breaking the law and every ethical guideline the hospital has to get a copy of the ultrasound. The gesture says everything that needs to be said. You've redeemed yourself," Wilson smiled at him. House nodded, glad that things would be okay and relieved he needn't make a speech about it.

"Good, because I kind of need a favor," House said sheepishly.

"Of course you do," Wilson said, sighing, laughing and shaking his head at once. It was a typical reaction to House. House dropped a file on Wilson's desk, which Wilson hadn't noticed previously. Expecting a consult, Wilson was taken aback by what he read.

"House, what the hell is this?" Wilson asked.

"I would have thought that was obvious by the words and stuff," House said, sitting on Wilson's couch.

"This is a letter to rescind a DNR," Wilson sputtered.

"I am aware of that," House said.

"When did you sign a DNR? How could you not tell me, I'm your proxy for God's sake?" Wilson demanded.

"I signed it after the shooting. I didn't tell you because I knew you'd only try to talk me out of it. Now I want it rescinded, so you don't have to talk me out of it, it's safe to tell you now. And read the rest, there's more stuff in there I need you to sign," House said.

Wilson shuffled through the papers and found what House was referring to. He was surprised again, and happy for his friend and hurt all at the same time. How could a man who routinely rejected any and all emotion evoke so much emotion in another person? It was something of a mystery.

"So, is that a no comment?" House asked.

"Are you sure about this?" Wilson asked, his voice catching a bit in his throat.

"As sure as I can be," House replied. Wilson nodded and reached for a pen. He signed the documents and put them back in the file. He handed them to House, who stood up and limped to the door.

"House," Wilson called. House turned. "Good for you."

Jasper and Chase approached House in the hall on his way out of Wilson's office. House was distracted, but not too much to notice the subtle shift in body language between the two of them. Rather than the acres of space Chase usually kept between them, they were walking together normally, no different than Chase would walk with anyone else.

"Dr. House we're having a problem," Jasper told him.

"Well, I'm sure you two kids can work it out. Have you tried couples therapy?" House asked. Jasper remained unruffled, but House noticed Chase look away uncomfortably. Interesting.

"A problem with our patients," Jasper said, exasperated. "We can't get the MRI."

"No way Cuddy puts off an MRI on these two," House said. "Go see her; she'll take care of it."

"House," Chase interjected. "They won't fit."

"What do you mean, they won't fit? They're little," House said.

"We can't get just Joyanna's head in the MRI. We can't do the test on the both of them, its messing up the images." Chase said, annoyed.

"What about the portable MRI?" House asked.

"What about it?" Jasper returned.

"It's smaller and it's more open. Try that, you might be able to get her in there," House suggested. Chase and Jasper turned and walked off down the hall. House watched for a minute as Chase leaned in and spoke quietly to Jasper. House smirked and walked into his office. He slid the papers into his desk and sat down, waiting for the results. He pulled out his Gameboy and worked on getting Lightning McQueen past Chic.

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House wandered to the patients room and stood outside the glass, watching. The twins were sleeping. Their parents, as exhausted as House had even seen anyone look, stood over the crib watching them intently. House took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Secretly, very secretly, he hated baby cases. For some reason, watching an infant dying prompted even more introspection than normal. He knew that Wilson would tell him it was good he was still able to care about another person, but House wasn't sure that had anything to do with it. Foreman interrupted his thoughts, signaling to House from down the hall. House shoved himself off the wall and limped toward the neurologist.

"What took so long?" House asked. "Did you forget what all the buttons did?"

"It took us forty five minutes just to get her in the machine. We had to sedate them; they couldn't keep still enough. Then we had to strap them to a backboard and tip them sideways. It took Chase, Cameron, Jasper and two nurses to hold them still enough to finish the scan," Foreman explained. The two entered House's office, where Foreman put up the MRI images. As House and Foreman studied the MRI, Chase, Cameron and Jasper filed in behind them, closely followed by Cuddy and Wilson. House turned to Foreman and noticed the crowd forming behind him.

"Did I forget my birthday again?" House asked. "Sweet of you to throw a party, but it's a little inappropriate, these girls are very sick." Cuddy rolled her eyes in exasperation, and House noticed she too looked very tired. Cameron and Wilson also both gave him an annoyed look.

"It looks vascular," Foreman said. "It's not a tumor, it's a clot. The pressure is causing her symptoms."

"That's great," Cuddy said. "Clots are easy. We'll just remove it."

"Not so easy, the clot is huge and it looks like there's some weakening of the vessel surrounding it. Removing it could kill her," Foreman replied.

"Not removing it could kill both of them," Cameron said. "We have to remove the clot. If we wait too long this family could lose both their girls."

"What we have to do," House said, "is present the family with our findings and let them decide what they want to do."

"Since when do you care what the family wants!" Cameron exploded. "You know that if Joyanna's clot ruptures and she dies, they'll never be able to separate them in enough time. Tanita's blood will still be trying to pump through her sister's body and they'll both die. Joyanna won't survive the separation surgery with that clot. There is no option; we have to remove the clot." Cameron was nearly screaming at House, and the others looked on in confusion. Certainly, Cameron was always concerned about the patients, but she normally only shouted when House suggested something insane. What House had suggested was perfectly reasonable.

"Cameron, this isn't our call. The parents need to understand the risks. If we try to remove the clot and Joyanna doesn't make, we'll be killing both of them."

"So you're saying we shouldn't even try? We should just tell the parents that no matter what, one of their girls is going to die, probably both of them?" Cameron was definitely shouting now, and House suspected this had less to do with Joyanna and Tanita themselves and more to do with Cameron not wanting to watch another baby die.

"Cameron, you're being irrational. We'll present all the options to the parents and let them decide what to do." House said, his voice low and calm.

"There has to be another way!" Cameron screamed at him.

"Just because you can't have a baby doesn't mean it's your mission in life to save every sick baby that comes into this hospital!" House shouted back. Wilson cringed. House watched all the emotion drain from Cameron's face; he looked as her eyes, which just seconds before had been filled with tears, dried. It was like watching your neighbor's house while they got ready for bed. Cameron systematically shut everything down. She was disconnecting, from him and everyone else. Most of the group shuffled their feet and stared at either the floor or the ceiling in embarrassment. They weren't sure what was going on, but it seemed a little more personal than they were meant to hear. Wilson looked physically pained. Cameron turned and walked into the conference room. They all watched her pick up her bag and jacket and walk out the door.


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

House sat in the chair in his office, twirling his cane. The others had filed out slowly after 'the incident'. Cuddy and the ducklings, Chase included, had gone to speak to the family. Wilson had lingered, but one glare from House was all it took for him to leave as well.

House had screwed up, and was in no mood for a lecture about it. He knew he was right, but he was also wrong. Cameron was obviously not making the sort of progress in therapy that House had assumed she was. He shook his head in disgust. He'd assumed. Just because she'd stopped crying he'd figured she was doing better. He should have realized that she was really just doing what he always did. She was holding it all inside so that nobody could see how vulnerable she really was. Correct that, so HE couldn't see it.

She really was worried that he would leave her if things got too emotional. And could he blame her, really? In all the time they'd known each other, had he ever really given her any reason to believe otherwise? He supposed not. He knew not. He should have given her the papers this morning. He sighed as he drew them out of his desk drawer. It had taken a lot of thinking for him to name her as his medical proxy. He'd never wanted to do it at all. After the infarction, he'd had his proxy for Stacy rescinded. He had told himself he would never sign another one, because he never wanted to let another person have that sort of control again.

When he'd come to work at PPTH, it had been a condition of his hiring that he have a proxy. Something about not wanted to get sued by one of their own doctors, blah, blah. He'd named Wilson because he figured the next time he was in the hospital it would be the end anyway. Then he'd gotten shot, and when he'd woken up, the first thing he did was sign a DNR. He decided it was just too much to go through again and for what?

It wasn't until recently, when Cameron had asked him about his leg that he'd even thought about it. He realized then, albeit in that quiet way of his where he realized something but never acknowledged it, that he wasn't just waiting to die anymore. He was living. When Quig suggested to him that he show another person that he trusted them, Cameron had been the only one he'd thought of. And this had seemed the perfect way to show that to her. Now he wondered if she'd ever even know.

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Cameron was in the parking garage, sitting on the hood of her car, cigarette in hand. She'd intended to go straight home, but by the time she reached her car she was trembling so hard she was afraid to drive. She walked around to the rear entrance to the hospital, where you could always find an orderly or a nurse sneaking a smoke, and bummed a couple of cigarettes.

Then she'd walked back to her car and sat on the hood, lighting up the first cigarette she'd had in nearly three months. She smiled ruefully as she took the first drag, House had won the bet. Of course. Tears began to run silently down her cheeks, and she inwardly cursed herself for her weakness.

She knew House was right, as always, but he was so wrong. She had gotten too attached to the patient, again. And she had let her own personal issues cloud her medical judgment, again. But to have her past dragged out and put on display for everyone was more than she thought she could stand. She thought of all the questions that were going through their minds and shuddered. It was exactly the reason she'd never told anyone her past before. Why on earth had she thought she could trust House, House, with something like that?

She supposed she had been fooling herself all along. She had told herself so many times after her husband died, that she would never give herself to someone else that completely again. She turned down scores of dates and advances over the years; all because she was afraid of losing control of her heart. And then those damn blue eyes had come along and blown away all her control. She could no more stop loving him than she could stop breathing.

Cameron inhaled deeply on her cigarette, cursing herself again for yet another weakness. She might not be able to stop herself from loving him, but she could stop herself from giving herself up to him. Cameron closed her eyes and waited for her tears to dry. She took a last drag on her cigarette and flicked it away. She watched as the glowing end hit the pavement, sparked and then rolled away. She steeled herself for what she knew would be the hardest thing she'd ever had to do. Harder even than watching her husband die. That had been out of her control. This wasn't.

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House sat alone in his office. He'd considered going after Cameron, but in the end decided he would probably only end up saying something worse. Instead he had gone home, and played his piano until the wee hours. He'd woken up alone this morning, something he hadn't done in quite some time, and he didn't like it.

House sat in his office, waiting to hear back from someone about what the family had decided. He turned to face the windows and watched the wind rustle the leaves in the trees. He heard the door opening behind him. He'd been expecting one of the ducklings, but he could feel her when she stepped inside the office.

House waited for her to say something, but there was only silence. He could feel her eyes staring at the back of his head, and they felt cold. He closed his own eyes, bracing himself for what was to come. He turned his chair slowly and opened his eyes. She looked beautiful. Her hair was pulled back tightly, showing all the angles of her face and the full length of her neck. She wore no makeup, and as a result he could clearly see the circles under her eyes, evidence of a troubled sleep. She was dressed comfortably, in a green sweater that made her eyes shine and gray pants. He looked over every inch of her, completely certain it would be the last time he'd ever see her.

She stepped forward to his desk and stopped. Closer, House could see just how dark the circles under her eyes were, which only heightened the redness around the edges, more evidence of a bad night. What bothered him most was the complete lack of emotion in them. Normally her eyes were literally like windows to her soul, but today he saw nothing. Nothing at all.

Before she could speak, Jasper and Chase entered from behind them, all noise and bustling. The tension that had been building in the room wasn't dissipated at all; in fact it seemed to triple. Jasper stopped when she caught the look on House's face, but Chase was drawn to Cameron's expression. He'd never seen her look so cold. Jasper and Chase glanced at each other, certain they'd intruded on a moment best left unmentioned.

"House, the family decided they want to try and remove the clot," Jasper spoke. "They're prepping the girls for surgery now. The surgical team tells me that if she comes through okay, we can still go through with the separation later in the week." House didn't acknowledge her at all, his eyes never wavering from Cameron's face. "I'll come back later, when I have an update on her condition." Jasper and Chase exchanged glances again. They left as quickly and unobtrusively as they could.

When Cameron heard the door close behind her, she took a deep breath. It was the only movement she'd made since she'd entered. If she let herself think about what she was doing for a minute, she'd never get through it without breaking down and she absolutely refused to let him see her cry one more time.

Cameron placed an envelope on House's desk. He seemed surprised, he hadn't noticed anything in her hands; he was so distracted by the void in her eyes. She remained silent, and House picked up the envelope. Finally able to tear his eyes away from her, he looked at the papers she had given him. He blinked. She was terminating her fellowship. He closed his eyes and composed himself before lifting his gaze back to hers.

"Cuddy approved my transfer as soon as you can find a replacement," Cameron said, her tone flat and even.

"Where are you going?" House asked, his voice equally level.

"Cuddy offered me a position as Associate Dean of Medicine a few weeks ago. Administrative work comes very easy to me, and I'll still be able to see patients from immunology and the clinic. Cuddy gets some permanent help instead of relying on her assistants, and I get …"

"Away from me."

"A change." Cameron held his gaze. She wasn't sure what she'd expected him to say, but she supposed she wasn't really surprised that he'd say nothing. They stared at each other for what seemed like forever. In Cameron's head, a voice was screaming at her to stop this before it was too late.

House nodded at her. He'd hoped that this would work out, but he supposed he wasn't really surprised that it had come to this. He wasn't a nice man, or an easy one to be with. He'd known all along that he'd hurt her someday, but he'd hoped, in that small part of his mind that he couldn't completely control, that she would be able to forgive him. That small part of his mind was screaming at him now, shouting to stop her before it was too late.

Cameron then reached into her pants pocket and withdrew a stack of bills. She dropped them on the desk. "I owe you a thousand dollars."

House cringed inside. He remembered the pain she'd been through the last time she was tempted to smoke, and it killed him that she was hurting that much now. And he hated himself for letting her get to him. He should have trusted his instincts when this all started, and stayed the hell away from her. In his desperation to cover how much this was hurting him too, he did what he always did.

"Those weren't the only terms of our bet," House said. "Your middle name is no longer in the vault."

"I considered tacking up a notice in the cafeteria, but you're so good at telling other people's secrets, I figured you'd take care of it," Cameron returned, her voice barely revealing the hurt and anger she felt. She looked at him one last time, and then turned and left his office, leaving him to consider how much like something he'd say that had sounded.


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

It was the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. The twins' parents had decided to have Joyanna's clot removed; the procedure had been done two days ago. And while Tanita had recovered nicely from the anesthesia, Joyanna hadn't woken up yet. Their parents were maintaining hope for her to recover as best they could under the circumstances, but the longer Joyanna remained unconscious, the more Chase and House's ducklings worried. House had spent the past two days locked in his office with the blinds drawn. It reminded Foreman and Chase eerily of the few days he'd been without Vicodin before entering rehab earlier in the year.

Cameron had spent most of the past two days in the lab or the clinic, but both Jasper and Wilson had seen her several times standing outside the NICU, watching the twins through the glass. She always made herself scarce when the girls' parents arrived, and this did not go unnoticed by Wilson. He'd tried to talk to House, several times in fact, but House flat out refused to open his doors. As much as Wilson wanted to talk to him, he wasn't willing to shout through the glass.

Late Wednesday afternoon found Cameron in the conference room, typing furiously at her laptop. Foreman came in and started gathering his things. House had given his okay for Foreman to leave early today, he was driving to spend Thanksgiving with his brother's family, and he wasn't about to double check and make sure it was okay. Cameron paused in her typing and looked at Foreman.

"Have a nice time with your family," she said softly. "I hope it goes smoothly with your brother."

"Thanks," Foreman replied, touched by her concern for him right now. "Listen, Cameron, are you going to be okay?"

"I'm fine," she answered. "Really, Foreman, I'm fine," she insisted to his doubting countenance.

"Okay. Happy Thanksgiving, Allison." Foreman left and Cameron closed her eyes and sighed. Sure, she thought, happy. Thanksgiving had always been one of her favorite holidays. There was nothing to distract you from its purpose, just to be grateful for the goods things in your life. Somehow this year, Cameron didn't feel like being thankful. She shook her head, strengthening her resolve not to cry at work, and returned to the laptop.

Moments later Jasper entered the conference room. She sat at the table and began reviewing the file she had carried in. Cameron looked over at her and had a sudden inspiration. Normally, it was the newest duckling that got saddled with working over the holidays. Cameron didn't see why Jasper should have to spend a holiday away from her family when she herself had nothing and no one to celebrate with this year.

"Jasper, why don't you go home?" Cameron said to her.

"It's okay, I'm the newbie. I don't mind staying, really." Jasper smiled at Cameron, although it was clear that she did care.

"I'm serious, Jasper, go home. Spend Thanksgiving with your family. I don't have any plans at all, and it would really make me happy to do something nice for someone else today."

"Are you really sure?" Jasper asked, considering. Cameron just nodded. "Won't Dr. House be angry?"

Cameron barely flinched. "I don't think Dr. House would even know the difference. He always takes full advantage of his time off."

"Thanks Cameron. I really appreciate this. Do you celebrate Christmas?" Cameron nodded. "Well then you're getting a nice Christmas present from me this year!" Cameron smiled, and Jasper returned it. Jasper gathered her things and left.

Cameron returned to her laptop once more. She checked her watch, and noted that it was now past five. Cameron decided she had best go check in with Chase and make sure the girls were all right. She was quickly finishing up the file she had been working on when the door from House's office opened.

"Jasper!" He shouted as he entered the conference room, in an obvious attempt to scare his new fellow. He stopped short when he took sight of Cameron at the desk.

"I offered to cover the holiday shifts for her," Cameron said quietly, avoiding eye contact as much as possible. "It's not as though I'm doing anything." It was cruel, perhaps, but she couldn't hold it in.

"I thought you were invited to Cuddy's?" House asked, trying to sound as though he didn't care.

"No, we were invited to Cuddy's," Cameron corrected. "I assumed you'd still be going."

"That doesn't mean you can't go," House argued.

"They're your friends. It wouldn't be polite," Cameron said, now regretting coming to the conference room to work.

"They're your friends too. You should go, I can work the holiday," House offered.

"House," Cameron huffed. "I don't want to argue about this too. I'm working and its fine." Cameron stood and gathered up her laptop. "I'm going to NICU to check on the girls. Happy Thanksgiving." She left as quickly as she could.

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House knocked on Cuddy's door, and shuffled his feet impatiently. He'd only agreed to come to this Thanksgiving thing because of Cameron, and now he was stuck spending the day with Wilson and Cuddy. He'd no doubt have to watch them canoodling, a most unappetizing idea. He'd considered just not showing up, but when he thought how angry a pregnant and hormonal Cuddy would act, he'd decided better of it. He feared she'd physically chain him in the clinic, and he did like the sunshine.

Wilson answered the door and House followed him inside. He'd been in Cuddy's house before, of course, but never actually as a guest. He took the time now to look around and noticed quite a few of Wilson's things scattered about the living room. If they weren't already living together, they would be soon. House made a mental note to track down Nurse Brenda on Monday about starting a betting pool.

"Lisa's in the kitchen," Wilson said. House raised an eyebrow. "She wouldn't let me cook anything. She said it was the first Thanksgiving she'd ever hosted and she was going to do it herself if it killed her. I wasn't about to argue."

"Taken to breathing fire now, has she?" House joked. "I told you she was demon seed."

"House," Wilson whined. House just grinned. A voiced shouted from the kitchen area.

"Was that the door, Sugarplum?" House snickered. Sugarplum, he mouthed at Wilson. Wilson shrugged.

"It's House," Wilson yelled back. Cuddy emerged from the kitchen, adorned with a hideous flowered apron. House snickered again, this time more loudly. So far this Thanksgiving thing wasn't turning out so bad. He'd be torturing Wilson about that Sugarplum for months, and now Cuddy was masquerading as somebody's grandma.

"Happy Thanksgiving, Greg," Cuddy said warmly. House eyed her and almost smiled. It was so cliché, but she was glowing. She was covered with several different colored smudges, she had a large streak of flour on her cheek and her hair was slipping out of its clip in a variety of directions, but House didn't think he'd ever seen her look so happy.

"Happy Thanksgiving, Lisa," House returned sincerely. "You too Jimmy."

Cuddy returned to the kitchen and House and Wilson settled on the couch to watch football. House had already warned Wilson that any talk about Cameron would result in his caning the person who brought her up and then leaving. Wilson, not about to ruin Cuddy's day, had readily agreed. Not too much later, Cuddy announced that dinner was ready.

The three friends sat and ate well. House watched as Cuddy consumed nearly as much food as he did, and was barely able to stop himself from commenting. He just kept reminding himself about pregnancy hormones, easily three times as dangerous as PMS, and was able to hold his tongue. When they'd all eaten enough, Wilson cleared the dishes, refusing to let Cuddy do all the work, and Cuddy and House went and sat in the living room. Wilson had TiVo'd the Thanksgiving Day Parade for Cuddy, who had been too busy in the kitchen to watch, and she turned it on now.

Cuddy and House watched the parade in a comfortable silence. Soon the smell of freshly brewed coffee drifted out into the living room, and shortly thereafter Wilson came out with a tray of coffee and two sliced of pumpkin pie. There was a third plate, which carried an enormous piece of chocolate cream pie. House actually smiled at Cuddy; she'd remembered how much he loved that.

"Don't worry, I bought the pies. It won't be like last time," Cuddy smiled. House smiled too, remembering the chocolate cream pie she's attempted to make for him years ago. House grabbed the plate and dug in.

Cuddy and Wilson exchanged a glance. They'd wanted to speak to House about something, and Wilson had suggested waiting until he was well fed.

"House, Greg, we wanted to talk to you about something," Cuddy began. House gave her a warning look. "It's not what you think. We've been talking to a lawyer about updating our wills, with the baby coming, and we need to name a guardian, in case something should happen to us." House gave them a blank look.

"Would you consider it?" Wilson asked.

"Consider what?"

"Being the baby's guardian," Wilson replied. House looked at Wilson, and then at Cuddy, like they were insane. Who on earth would trust him with a kid? "Well, one of the guardians."

"One of?" House asked. Wilson and Cuddy exchanged another meaningful glance.

"We'd intended to ask Allison as well," Cuddy told him. "Our parents are older, and caring for a young child would really be more than they could handle. James' brother Richard has four children of his own."

"And there's no two people we'd trust more to take care of our child if we couldn't," Wilson supplied. House looked down, tapping his cane on the floor. He doubted very much that he'd be a good parent; he certainly hadn't had the best example growing up. But Allison, Cameron, whatever, she'd be a great mom. That thought brought up a whole bunch of other things he didn't want to think about, and he forced them to the back of his mind. Wilson and Cuddy trusted him.

"Fine, but you'd better not kick off until the kid is potty trained," House snarked. Wilson and Cuddy just smiled, typical House.

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Cameron had been in the conference room for just a few minutes. She was still waiting for the coffee to finish brewing. She'd wondered if she should really make an entire pot of coffee for just herself, but decided that she'd probably need it. It was just past 8am, and she was scheduled to be on until 6pm. She waited patiently for the coffee to brew, not all that anxious to got check on the twins.

"Hey Mikki," Chase's voice called from the hall. Cameron turned to see Chase, looking confused and disappointed. "Cameron. What are you doing here?"

"Nice to see you too," Cameron replied wryly. "I offered to cover Jasper's shifts for the holiday so she could spend time with her family." Cameron turned back to the coffee pot. "It's not as though I had anything to do anyway," she grumbled, but not as quietly as she'd thought.

"That bad, huh?" Chase asked sympathetically.

"I'm fine," Cameron said to the coffee pot.

"Right. I thought we were going to try to be friends. You can talk to me," Chase said quietly.

Cameron turned and looked at Chase. He was right. She was doing exactly what had gotten her into this trouble in the first place. She was trying to close herself off from what she was feeling. She was acting just like House had always done, she realized bitterly.

"I know. And I appreciate it. I'm just not ready to talk about it yet," Cameron told him. She smiled at him to him know that she really was okay. Chase smiled back. "So, Mikki?"

Chase blushed. He had thought it would be insensitive to talk about him and Jasper with Cameron, but since she'd asked, he guessed it was okay. "She's amazing," he practically gushed.

"Good for you, Chase." Cameron said sincerely. She was feeling sorry for herself now, surely, but in time she would be better and she didn't see the sense in dragging Chase into her foul mood.

"I'll take a cup of that to go, if you don't mind," Chase said, pointing to the now full coffee pot. "The coffee in the NICU tastes like sludge."

Cameron spent most of the morning in the conference room, catching up on the charting House had let pile up. She liked the quiet in the hospital on a holiday, at least upstairs. She was sure the clinic was buzzing with people, but she wasn't scheduled for clinic duty that day. She completed the last of the files, and decided to check in on the twins before beginning some research on an article she was planning to write.

Cameron arrived at the NICU to find Chase standing over the twins' crib with their parents. She waited outside, watching them through the wall. She could force herself to check up on the twins, but she wasn't so sure how she'd do with the parents. Chase looked up and noticed her outside. He excused himself from Mr. and Mrs. Ramos and went into the hall.

"How are they?" Cameron asked.

"Better," Chase replied. Cameron looked surprised. "Well, I mean not better like cured, but Joyanna's vitals are improving. It could be a good sign." Cameron just nodded her agreement. "I've got this, Cameron; you don't have to be here right now. I'll page you if I need you, okay?"

Cameron smiled at him gratefully; he really could be sweet when he wanted to be. And she appreciated it. She placed her hand on his arm to show her thanks and returned to the conference room. Once there, she began looking over the notes she'd made on the charts she had been reviewing that morning, trying to decide which case would make the most interesting article.

She'd finally decided on a case and was engrossed in her research when her pager went off. Seeing the NICU, she sprinted for the stairs and took them two at a time, nearly crashing into Chase standing outside.

"What is it?" Cameron gasped breathless. "Why aren't you in there?"

"Cameron, relax. Joyanna's awake," Chase said, pointing inside. Cameron turned and tears flooded her eyes as she watched Mr. and Mrs. Ramos, standing on either side of the crib, holding their daughters' hands. She smiled at Chase, tears glistening in her eyes. She'd found something to be thankful for after all.


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter 33 

Cameron and House, both bolstered by their unexpectedly happy Thanksgivings, were able to enjoy a quiet weekend at home alone. House spent most of his time playing his piano, something he enjoyed but had been neglecting of late. Cameron decided she needed a little comforting, and turned to books, as she often did. House played some of his old favorites, including some jazz pieces Cameron had never appreciated. Cameron chose one of her childhood favorites, Anne of Green Gables.

House was surprised to find that after playing those few pieces Cameron had never cared for, his fingers returned to her requests on their own; he barely noticed until he realized he'd begun to play Billy Joel's She's Got a Way, Cameron's all time favorite. Cameron discovered that Anne's antics simply couldn't hold her attention and she found herself channel surfing, eventually settling on a Dirty Jobs marathon on the Discovery Channel.

Monday returned the staff of PPTH to their offices, and most were happy enough to come. Wilson and Cuddy arrived together, early as always. After sharing a quiet breakfast in Cuddy's office, Wilson went to his office to work on clearing his schedule to help House interview for Cameron's replacement.

Cameron arrived early as well, as was her routine. She wanted to get through the usual pile of Monday mail, of both the paper and electronic type, before House arrived. She wasn't avoiding him exactly, just limiting her contact. She began a pot of coffee when she arrived in the conference room and settled at the desk in the corner.

Jasper found Cameron so engrossed in her task that she didn't even look up upon the other woman's entrance. Jasper poured herself a cup of coffee, and one for Cameron. She placed it on the desk along with some sugar packets, as she wasn't sure how the immunologist liked her coffee. Cameron glanced up and smiled thankfully.

Before Jasper could thank Cameron for covering for her over the holiday, Chase appeared in the hall and gestured for her to join him. Jasper and Chase greeted each other warmly, just short of embracing. They chatted for a few minutes, and made plans to meet for lunch. As Chase walked down the hall, Foreman approached from the opposite direction.

Foreman followed Jasper into the conference room. He first put away his things and then went to the coffee pot. After pouring himself a cup, which he drank almost in one swallow, he refilled and sat down.

"Better," he said, rubbing his face tiredly. "Morning ladies. How was your weekend?"

"Lovely, thank you," Jasper replied. "Cameron offered to cover my shift for the holiday, so I got to see my family after all. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it," she said to Cameron. "My brother Aidan and his wife came from Washington and brought my new niece, Amanda."

"How did things go with Marcus?" Cameron asked Foreman.

"Good. They were good. We had a nice visit and I got to know Nichelle and the kids better. I guess I never really realized how much I missed having my big brother around until he was there again," Foreman said. Jasper nodded emphatically but Cameron only smiled.

"Do we have a case today?" Jasper asked.

"No, but the Ramos twins are having their separation surgery tomorrow. If no new cases come in we can observe," Cameron informed them.

"Joyanna woke up?" Foreman asked, surprised. He hadn't been so sure she would pull through.

"Thursday afternoon," Cameron confirmed. "We had our own little Thanksgiving miracle."

"Oh gag me, already," House said, entering from his office. Cameron stiffened a little, but only a little. It was unnoticeable to Foreman and Jasper, but not to House. Nothing about Cameron would be unnoticeable to him again, he'd decided.

House limped to the coffee pot and poured himself a cup. He took a sip and smirked. Cameron beat Jasper to the coffee pot. Maybe she was having second thoughts about being replaced?

"I see Jasper wasn't the early bird today. Too bad, I finally found someone who can make a better pot of coffee than Cameron and her talent is being wasted," House said, looking for a reaction.

"Excellent," Cameron said. "Coffee making and mail sorting, check. That should make hiring your new fellow much easier." She spoke lightly, but never turned to face him. In truth, she'd been having doubts about leaving before she'd even handed in her resignation, but he didn't need to know that.

House frowned. He hadn't gotten a good look at her and he really couldn't tell whether or not she cared anymore that they wouldn't see each other. He limped back to his office, not sure if he was more annoyed that she might not care or that he couldn't tell the difference.

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The following morning, the hospital was buzzing with anticipation about the Ramos twins' surgery. Virtually every surgical student, intern and resident in the hospital and university was seated in main auditorium, waiting for word that they could begin filing into the hospital's amphitheater OR. Cuddy had once again asked House to 'borrow' Cameron to help corral the masses. House grudgingly agreed.

As the surgical team prepared for the separation procedure, House and Wilson walked toward the amphitheater. As one of the twins' attendings during Joyanna's brief but serious illness, House had been granted permission by the family to scrub in for the procedure. He declined. Although it was interesting, the OR would be crowded enough. The last thing the surgical team needed was a six foot tall cripple with a cane getting in the way.

"Not scrubbing in?" Wilson asked him as they passed a trio of nurses. Wilson smiled at them and House scowled.

"No, too many chefs spoil the pot," House replied. "And stop doing that."

"Doing what?"

"Smiling at the nurses. You're spoken for, remember?" House chastised.

"I smiled, I didn't propose," Wilson protested.

"Yeah, yeah. Smiling leads to talking, talking leads to coffee and we all know where coffee leads," House grumbled.

"And you thought Chase was cranky when he didn't get any fuzz," Wilson commented. House gave him a murderous look. Wilson ignored it. House was being an idiot. Cameron was probably his last chance to find a woman who wasn't a prison guard who would spend any amount of time with him.

"I thought we agreed we weren't going to talk about that," House said in a warning tone.

"No, you agreed we weren't going to talk about it" Wilson argued. "Just tell her you're sorry."

"Why should I be the one to say I'm sorry? She's the one who went all postal on me about these kids." House retorted.

"And then you screamed out her inability to have children in front of half a dozen people," Wilson said.

House stopped and closed his eyes. They had nearly reached the amphitheater, and he wanted to get inside and get seated before Cuddy and Cameron showed up to herd in the onlookers. He had successfully managed to avoid her the entire previous day, and he hoped to do the same today. It was just too hard to be near her and not grab her and force her to apologize and say she still wanted him.

"And that may have been an error in judgment," House admitted to his shoelaces.

"Then talk to her," Wilson urged.

"And say what?"

"Tell her the truth," Wilson suggested.

"Tell her I think she was being irrational and if she could just keep her emotions under control around our patients we wouldn't have had that stupid fight and she could be on my couch right now criticizing my housekeeping?" House asked.

"How about telling her you were wrong to say something so personal in front of all those people, you miss her and you want her back?" Wilson asked. House scoffed. "You know, if you took the first step and apologized, she'd probably admit that she was wrong to let her emotions get in the way and tell you she misses you too."

"I'm not so sure," House mumbled.

"Then find out. Do you really need to add another regret to your list?" Wilson asked. He walked the last few steps to the amphitheater and entered, leaving House to stand in the hall and contemplate his next move, if there was to be one.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cameron and Cuddy quadruple checked their list of things to do making sure no detail had been overlooked before giving the go ahead to start prepping the twins for their surgery. It had been so long since Cuddy had a dependable assistant that Cameron had to practically sedate her before Cuddy would let her handle even the simplest task that morning. Cameron understood that this was one of those times when Cuddy felt the need for absolute control over everything, but she also knew that this much stress was positively toxic to both Cuddy and the baby.

"We're good," Cameron insisted.

"What about…"Cuddy began, but Cameron placed both her hands on Cuddy's shoulders and looked her squarely in the face.

"Lisa, stop it," Cameron demanded. Cuddy took a deep breath and nodded. "Everything is fine. We've been over everything at least four times. We can't delay any longer. I'm going to give them the go ahead to start prepping the girls. You sit down and I'll bring you some tea. We'll have about a half hour before things get started."

Cameron left Cuddy sitting on the couch in her office, wracked with nerves. She hated that all her raging hormones were making her feel so out of control at times, but she wouldn't change it for the world. She'd just have to learn to relax. She smiled softly, maybe James was right and she should consider taking up yoga. She certainly couldn't keep running ten miles a day, and it might be helpful to relieving some stress. She made a mental note to look into it.

Just thinking of James helped Cuddy relax. It was funny how he had such a wonderful effect on her. They'd been friends for so many years and had nothing but a casual friendship, their most intimate link being House. And of course it was House's shooting and rehab that eventually brought them together. She supposed that meant in some bizarre way she had House to thank for her relationship with James and for their child. She smirked, well if that wasn't a huge slice of irony for you.

Cameron returned with Cuddy's tea, glad to see her smiling to herself. She knew she had a tendency to over worry, but this time she didn't feel like she was. Cuddy really didn't seem to know how to slow down, and Cameron only hoped House would be able to find her replacement soon so she could start taking some of the load of this poor woman's shoulders.

"Black walnut and ginger," Cameron said as she placed the tea on the table. "House's favorite," she muttered, remembering the face he'd made when he tasted it for the first time.

"Thank you," Cuddy said, taking a sip. It was nice. She'd heard that last comment, but wasn't sure that she and Cameron were quite close enough yet for her to start handing out advice about House. "So, how are things?"

"Things?" Cameron asked. She knew this would be coming sooner or later. "Things are fine."

"Allison, House was right, you can't lie for shit," Cuddy replied. "Look, I know this isn't exactly my place, but I can sympathize."

"I know. House told me you used to go out," Cameron said.

"Really? I'm surprised. He doesn't tell anyone much of anything, except James," Cuddy remarked. "All I'm saying is I remember being where you are now. After the first real fight, the first time his inevitable House-ishness made you doubt whether he was worth it." Cameron looked away, and Cuddy knew she was right. "I'm sure this will come as no surprise to you, but he's very insecure about relationships. It's something to do with his father, I'm sure, but I have no idea what. That's why he always pushing. It has to be concrete for him. There has to be that limit, that line that he knows he can't cross. And then once he's found it, he'll seldom cross it if he really cares about you. You just have to let him know where it is."

Cameron nodded. She knew Cuddy was probably right. And although Cameron had doubted it that first night, she knew he was worth it. She just wasn't sure if she was worth it for him.


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

As throngs of students and surgeons filed into the seating area of the amphitheater, Cameron looked on without interest. The flutter and bustle of preparing for the surgery over, she was left feeling flat now that her part in the proceedings had been completed. She hoped the surgery went well, of course, and was concerned about the twins and their parents, but all she could do now was wait. She really did not want to wait with a hundred other people whispering around her.

House, seated with Wilson across the amphitheater, watched Cameron watch the students file into their seats. He noted her expression and recognized it immediately. It was an expression he'd worn often enough. Her job was done, and now there was nothing to do but wait and see if whatever came next, treatment or surgery, would work. Personally, he never wanted to spend that time waiting with other people around. It was one thing to figure out what was wrong, but that was only one part. The second part was fixing it. Cameron had pushed hard for the family to treat Joyanna's clot so she and Tanita could still have this separation surgery, and now that decision was being put on the line.

Cameron glanced across the amphitheater and saw House and Wilson seated in the front. She'd expected to see Wilson there, it was a fascinating procedure after all, but she was surprised to see House. It wasn't like him to be interested in a case after he'd finished his diagnosis. Of course, not many people got the opportunity to watch this type of surgery, so she supposed his curiosity got the better of him. She noticed him begin to turn in her direction and immediately shifted her gaze back to the students filling in the seats before her. She didn't want him to know she'd been watching him.

House glanced away from Cameron for a moment to answer some inane comment Wilson made about the number of nurses in the OR, and when he looked back he caught Cameron looking away. He frowned and stared at his sneaker tops. She was avoiding him. He chanced to glance up again and once more caught her looking away. She was watching him, just like he was watching her. Maybe it was a good sign.

Cameron looked away again as House lifted his gaze from the floor in her direction. He was watching her, and she wasn't sure she was ready to meet his eyes yet. She had pretty much decided that if he made even a small gesture, anything to let her know that he missed her or was sorry, she would embrace it and see if they could work it out. She had known this wasn't going to be easy, and if he was willing to try even a little then so was she. She missed him more than even she had expected, and she was afraid that she'd lose her resolve in all that blue. She was wrong, and she knew that, but he was wrong too and she couldn't just give in and let him do that to her. She had to be sure he understood how much he'd hurt her, and how he'd violated her trust and that it meant something to him.

House wondered how long they could avoid each other in a hospital as large as this one. Probably weeks, really, if they didn't get another case before he hired a new fellow. He frowned again. He didn't want to hire a replacement for Cameron. He didn't want her to go. He was wrong and he knew that, but she was wrong too and he just wasn't ready to put himself out there like that if she wasn't willing to. House noticed the volume of the commotion around him lessen, and he realized that all the spectators had arrived and the surgery was about to begin.

The lights were adjusted to give the surgeons the best field available while not reflecting too much off the glass walls of the amphitheater seats above. Once the lighting was adjusted to the satisfaction of the team, there was a short burst of static from the OR's speaker system. Music began to issue from the speakers at a low volume in the OR, although slightly louder in the seating area. One of the lead surgeons had requested the music, and luckily none of the team had objected. All the monitors were checked, and the surgery proceeded.

About a half hour into the procedure, House began scanning the students. Most were attentive, with a few yawners scattered about for good measure. As his eyes roamed their faces, his gaze drifted to Cameron. She had been watching him again, and this time his eyes caught hers. He wondered how long she had been watching him. There was no looking away, and he found that her eyes had as powerful an affect on him from across a crowded OR as they did from the left side of his bed.

Cameron couldn't tear her eyes away from House. She felt powerless, something she often felt when she was mesmerized by his gaze. But as they held each other's eyes, she watched the expression on his face soften and thought, for the first time, that maybe she could affect him too. She smiled softly. House responded to her smile with a smile of his own and just when Cameron felt she couldn't possibly stare at him any longer, he nodded his head toward the exit.

Cameron and House excused themselves as unobtrusively as possible and made their way toward the exits. House limped quickly out the door and down the hall to the exit for the other side of the amphitheater. He reached the opposite door and waited. And waited. He finally began to wonder whether he had completely misunderstood her look when the door inched open. Cameron exited slowly, and closed the door quietly behind her.

Cameron lifted her eyes to meet House's and held her gaze steady. They stared at each other intensely, neither speaking. Wishing he would just do something, Cameron looked away. House blinked. He wasn't sure what he had expected, but this wasn't it. He turned to walk away and although Cameron tried to muffle it, he heard a small exhalation. It was all he needed. He turned back quickly and grabbed her, pulling her into a smoldering kiss.

House and Cameron melted into each other. Cameron didn't think she'd ever felt so much emotion from House before. It was like he was trying to tell her something with this kiss so he wouldn't have to say it. Cameron knew talking about his feelings was difficult for him, but she couldn't just let this happen every time. It took every ounce of strength she had, but she pulled away. She needed to hear the words.

House nestled his face into Cameron's hair. He'd hoped that kiss would tell her all she needed to know, but he wasn't surprised she was the one to pull away. He knew she was waiting for him to apologize, and he knew he should do it. It was just so hard for him to give up that control. It was something he'd been struggling with for days. He couldn't have both. He knew that if he let go and let himself feel it, he would lose control and she would gain it. House felt Cameron release her hold on his jacket and try to pull away. He tightened his grip on her waist. Control he could give up, Cameron he couldn't.

"I missed you," he breathed into her hair. She stopped pulling away, but she wasn't holding him either. House knew she needed more. "Allison, I'm sorry." She leaned closer, but her arms remained at her sides. He sighed. He wasn't sure what more he could say. "Why are you making this so hard?"

"I'm not making it hard, House. It just is," she said to his chest.

"I thought love was supposed to be easy."

"Nothing good is ever easy," Cameron replied before she realized the implication. She raised her head and faced him. "Did you say love?"

House looked into her eyes for a long time. Did he say love? Did he mean it? Was he finally going to give in and admit that he loved her? After Stacy left, he'd convinced himself love was a sham, an idea people fed themselves, an opiate for the masses designed to give meaning to their baser drives. Was he, Gregory House, now going to admit that he was wrong, that love was real and that even he could experience it?

At that moment, the amphitheater doors opened and several students exited, apparently deciding ten hours was too long to spend watching a procedure. They chatted noisily about returning later in the morning to see the progress that had been made. Oblivious to the intensely private moment onto which they had intruded, one of the students inadvertently jostled Cameron's elbow as he passed.

It was just enough to break her eye contact with House. He dropped his hands from her waist as he finally noticed the students in the hall. Cameron turned back to the amphitheater and noticed Cuddy's annoyed expression as the door closed behind the last exiting student. Sighing, she knew she had to get back. She turned back to House, hoping that he would still want to talk, only to catch a glimpse of him turning the corner at the far end of the hall.

Cameron blinked back the tears that flooded her eyes. She couldn't even begin to contemplate why he'd run. She took several deep breaths before she returned to her seat at Cuddy's side. Cuddy glanced at her; she'd noticed House's sudden absence beside Wilson and hoped for good news.

"Everything okay?" Cuddy asked.

"Fine," Cameron replied, smiling brightly and falsely. Cuddy nodded. This wasn't the place to get into that discussion. "House coming back in?"

"Not sure," Cameron answered, not trusting herself to say anything else. Cuddy nodded again. She turned slightly in her seat and angled herself away from Cameron, who was now watching the surgery with a very concentrated stare. Pulling out her cell phone, she sent Wilson a text message.

_Go find House_

Wilson's phone vibrated in his lab coat pocket. He took it out, wondering who could possibly be calling him now. He glanced down to see a text message from Cuddy, who was sitting across the OR from him. Staring at her through the glass panes, he gave her a strange look. Cuddy made an impatient face at him and then pointed to Cameron. Wilson checked the message and became concerned.

_What happened?_

Cuddy read his reply and looked at him in disbelief and frustration. Wilson returned her look innocently.

_That's why you need to find House!_

Wilson made a face. He'd already pushed his luck that morning by talking about Cameron. He really did hit people with that cane, or had Cuddy forgotten? He considered making up some lame excuse, but as afraid as he was of House's cane, he was more afraid of Lisa's hormones. Wilson excused himself and went in search of House, wondering to himself what the big oaf had done now.

xxxxxxx

Quig shuffled some papers on his desk, grimacing at the most distasteful part of his job. He hated paperwork; he always had. Years ago, he had been able to dictate his notes and have a transcriptionist type them up later. Now that sort of expense was considered prohibitive to the department's budget. So he was currently shuffling through the week's worth of patient notes on his desk, looking for a thin file to work on. He'd never been so relieved to hear a knock on his door as he was at that moment. Even rioting psych patients were preferable to this torture. They were at least entertaining. He shouted a restrained 'come in' and smiled when House entered. Not a rioting psych patient, yet, but still enjoyable.

"It's not Friday," he said to his visitor.

"Yeah, well, we were off last Friday so I figured you owed me one," House said, settling himself into one of Quig's brown leather chairs.

"Please, make yourself comfortable," Quig joked. House didn't smirk, which was his custom. He greatly enjoyed bantering with Quig normally. Quig took this response as a signal that House might actually want to talk about something, and that was most definitely more important than paperwork. "Things not going well with Dr. Cameron?"

"How did you know that?" House asked. House wondered why he cared if people were talking about him. He didn't, he decided. He cared if people were talking about her.

"A little birdie told me you might want to talk this week," Quig replied, sitting in the leather chair opposite House. House raised an eyebrow at him. "Okay, a brown-eyed oncologist told me."

"Wilson gossips," House stated. Quig nodded, and waited. "We had a fight."

"That happens."

"In front of some people."

"Well," Quig mused. "That happens too. You can't always choose where a fight is going to happen." He paused. "When was this?"

"Last week."

"And still this upset? Must have been a hell of a fight." House grunted. "Relationship ending fight?" House shrugged. "House, I know this is hard for you, but speaking will be necessary if you want me to follow along."

"The fight itself probably wasn't that bad," House sighed. "We were yelling about a patient. We do that all the time. But she was being so irrational and I yelled something that I shouldn't have said."

"In front of people?" Quig prodded.

"Cuddy, Wilson, Foreman, Chase and Jasper," House confirmed.

"That is quite the crowd. What did you say?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Maybe that's the problem."

"What?" House asked, not following.

"The fact that you think it doesn't matter is a problem. It obviously matters to Dr. Cameron, or you wouldn't be here talking to me." Quig said.

"I didn't mean it didn't matter," House protested. "I'm not a moron, I know it matters. I meant what I said specifically wasn't important. It was very personal to Alli-, Cameron, and I yelled it out in front of all her colleagues and my boss and best friend."

"And why did you do that?" Quig asked. House rolled his eyes. "I'm serious. Did you intend to say it? Was it designed to embarrass her, hurt her? Entertain you audience?"

"NO!" House shouted. "No," he repeated, more quietly. "I wasn't thinking at all, I was just…"

"Angry?"

"In pain," House mumbled.

"Your leg." Quig surmised. House shook his head in the negative. "Then what?"

"Allison," he admitted quietly, looking at his shoes, the floor, the wall. "She was in pain, and I didn't notice. It hurt."

"You were scared."

"No, yes, maybe. What would I be scared of?" House asked.

"You're in love with her," Quig answered. "Love is scary. All that emotion, the pain, the work."

"I thought love was supposed to make things easier," House said, echoing his earlier statement to Cameron.

"It does. But love isn't easy. If it was easy, it wouldn't be special. Everyone would have it and it wouldn't mean anything." Quig said. House nodded. Now, sitting quietly in Quig's office, did it occur to House how Cameron must be feeling after he'd run without answering her question.

"I think I'm in trouble," House said.

"Tell me about it," Quig joked.

"No really," House said. He quickly explained to Quig what had happened. "I didn't answer her. She turned and I ran. I ran. What am I supposed to do now?"

"Shrink answer or friend answer?" Quig asked.

"Friend answer first."

"Get on your one good knee, tell her you love her and beg her to take you back." Quig said seriously.

"Funny. Now the shrink answer."

"Flowers and chocolates are nice too." Quig smiled. House made a face at him. He felt marginally better. He stood and grabbed his cane from the arm of the chair, bracing himself for the big romantic gesture he would have to make.

"You're an ass." House told Quig as he walked to the door.

"You're the expert." Quig replied, shifting through his paperwork once more. Luckily, he didn't see the tongue House waved at him as he walked out.


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter 35 

Wilson found House exiting Quig's office. House almost turned and walked in the opposite direction, but decided against it. Sometimes his instincts were wrong when it came to this whole relationship stuff, and he decided to push himself a little.

"What happened?" Wilson asked him. "Lisa's freaking out, something must be wrong with Allison. What did you do now?"

"Does Cuddy like chocolate better, or flowers?" House asked.

"What?"

"Chocolate or flowers?" House repeated, more slowly.

"What does that have to do with Allison?" Wilson asked, confused. House gestured impatiently and Wilson huffed. "She's pregnant, of course chocolate."

"What about jewelry, does she like jewelry?" House continued in his questioning, now limping toward the elevators.

"I suppose," Wilson said, hurrying to catch up. "Where are we going?"

"Office," House answered, stepping into the elevator and jabbing the button with the tip of his cane. Wilson slipped between the closing doors just in time.

"House, what's going on? No diversions this time."

House rolled his eyes, but related the story to Wilson, all the while carefully watching the floor numbers light up on the elevator display. When the doors opened on their floor, House stepped out and limped quickly toward his office, once again forcing Wilson to jump through the closing elevator doors and rush to catch up.

"So, what are we doing?" Wilson asked again.

"_We_," House said, "aren't doing anything. _I_ am going out." House grabbed his jacket and limped toward the door.

"House," Wilson called. House paused, his hand on the doorknob. "Pearls." House frowned. "Her birthstone, pearls." House nodded and Wilson watched him limp away, hoping he knew what he was doing.

xxxxxxx

House didn't return to the hospital. Once the twin's surgery was completed, Cuddy and Cameron were once again busy with the team of surgeons and organizing the extra nursing care they would need during their recovery.

Wilson stood back and watched as Cuddy and Cameron spent a few quiet moments with the twins and their parents. The wonder of watching Mr. and Mrs. Ramos standing between two cribs was enough to make even Wilson's eyes a little misty. As Cuddy and Cameron walked toward the NICU doors, Wilson blinked rapidly a few times.

"Hey," Cuddy said softly to him. She was absolutely exhausted, and Wilson wanted to get her home into a warm bath. Cuddy took Wilson by the elbow and turned him away from Cameron, who was saying her goodbyes to the Ramos family. "Where is he?"

"I don't know," Wilson said quietly. "He left this morning to buy her a gift but he never came back."

"What happened? I didn't want to pry, but she looked like she couldn't decide if she should cry, scream or laugh. Is everything okay?"

"I'll tell you later. He might just work it out," Wilson said hopefully. Cuddy looked surprised. She hoped Wilson was right.

"Allison, you look beat," Cuddy said as Cameron approached.

"Me? What about you?" Cameron replied. "James, get her home to bed and a huge ice cream sundae," Cameron ordered, smiling slightly.

"Ooh, with lots of hot fudge," Cuddy smiled.

"I know, I know, it's all about the chocolate. Go ahead, I'll catch up," Wilson said to Cuddy, and she nodded. As Cuddy walked down the hall, Wilson turned to Cameron. "Allison, I want you to promise me something." Cameron looked at him, dubious. She knew this had something to do with House, but she wasn't committing to anything. "If he should stop by to see you tonight, and I really think he might, just promise me you'll give him a chance."

Cameron sighed. "How many chances am I supposed to give him, Jimmy?" she asked tiredly.

"As many as it takes," Wilson said, dropping a friendly kiss on her cheek and walking off to take care of his own woman.

Cameron sighed again, too tired to think about the whole mess anymore. She went to the diagnostic office and gathered up her things. House's office was dark, he'd never come back to the OR after their little encounter, and Cameron knew he would have gone home long ago. As she drove home, she turned her radio to one of House's favorite stations and blasted the volume, just as he would have done. It was silly, and she knew it, but it made her feel better all the same.

She unlocked her apartment door and entered, dropping her keys and bag on the hall table. Shrugging out of her jacket she noticed a light on in her bathroom. It was odd, she was sure she'd turned all the lights off this morning. Walking down the hall, she noticed a light in her bedroom as well. She began to be afraid, for she was absolutely certain that light hadn't been on when she left. As she walked closer, she caught a hint of a fragrance and recognized the apple scented candle she kept in her room. Another few steps and she could hear piano music playing softly. Reaching the bedroom door, she tented her fingers and pushed it open slowly.

"Hi," he said.

"House," Cameron said, forcing her voice to sound annoyed, "what are you doing?"

"Waiting for you, I would have thought that was obvious," he replied, with just a trace of sarcasm.

Cameron sighed. "I mean, what are you doing here, in my bedroom, when I'm not home?"

"I wanted to talk to you. This is where you live, it seemed like the simplest solution," House said, again carefully masking the sarcasm.

"House," Cameron said, no longer forcing her voice to sound annoyed, as she was truly irritated.

"I need you to know I'm sorry," House said.

"And you thought the best way to apologize would be to break into my apartment?" Cameron asked.

"I figured it was my best shot of getting in the door," House replied honestly. Cameron softened. Maybe she wasn't the only one who was afraid. "I brought you some presents."

"That's not going to solve anything," Cameron said.

"No, but if you have gifts to open, you won't be looking at me while I talk," House said. "It's all about being practical."

Cameron raised an eyebrow. He wanted to talk? Will wonders never cease, she thought, but walked over slowly and sat beside him on the bed. He moved over, not to get away but to make room for her to open the gifts he now lifted from the floor and placed between them. He nodded for her to start and she looked at him questioningly.

"Start with the big one," House instructed, and Cameron did. As she unwrapped the box House indicated, he spoke. "I told you before that I wasn't that easy to get rid of. I meant it. I didn't wait almost three years to let you in just to shove you out again after a few months." He spoke to the floor, never looking at Cameron, all the while tapping his cane between his feet.

Cameron, sensing how hard this was for him, kept her attention firmly focused on the gift before her. Finished with the paper, she opened the box and removed a large, dark gray men's t-shirt. Confused, she unfolded it and laughed out loud. Screen printed on the front were the words 'Property of Allison Cameron, M.D.'. House smiled at her laugh, he had hoped the t-shirt would get that reaction. He nodded to the box again, still carefully avoiding making eye contact. Cameron looked and saw another t-shirt. She lifted the second shirt, a much smaller and lighter gray ladies' shirt and unfolded that as well. Smiling, she read 'Property of Gregory House, M.D.' on the front.

"Matching t-shirts?" Cameron asked softly.

"For the hospital Christmas party," House joked. "The nurses will have a field day. My little gift to the rumor mill."

"Which one next?" Cameron asked, studying the two remaining presents. One was a large manila envelope, and the second was a smaller box.

"The little one is last," House said, and Cameron tingled a bit. It looked about the size of a jeweler's box, but she was absolutely certain it did not contain an engagement ring. "It's not what you think," House said, confirming Cameron's thoughts.

She reached for the envelope and opened it, only to have two more envelopes slide out. She opened the first and unfolded the pages inside. She recognized the forms immediately and gasped. He had changed his medical proxy forms to show her instead of Wilson. Tears threatened, but she managed to hold them back. She opened the second envelope and found a key. She looked up, waiting for an explanation.

"I trust you," he said. Cameron turned the key over in her hands and noticed it was engraved. _House's House_, it read.

Cameron took a deep breath as she reached for the last box. She was already near tears when she opened what was, in fact, a jeweler's box to find a stunning pair of black pearl earrings.

"Black pearls?"

"Wilson said they're your birthstone," House replied, uncertainly.

"They are," Cameron answered reassuringly. "Black just isn't the traditional."

"I'm not really a traditional kind of guy."

"They're beautiful," Cameron said slowly.

"But?"

"Pearls are for tears," Cameron said quietly. It was probably silly, but she'd always hated her birthstone for that reason. She'd felt for a long time that the universe was cursing her to a life of sorrow. House stopped tapping his cane, but continued to stare at the floor. He was slow in answering, but finally spoke.

"I can't promise you a life without tears. In fact, I can tell you now I'll probably be the cause of a lot of them," House spoke quietly, and Cameron held her breath in order not to miss any nuance of his speech. "The only thing I can promise you is that if you want me, I'll be there to wipe them away."

The tears that had threatened now began to fall. House lifted his head from the floor and faced Cameron, watching the tears roll down her cheeks but still avoiding eye contact. He gently cupped her face with one hand and wiped a tear from her cheek with his thumb.

"There's one more thing," House said, finally meeting her eyes with his own. Cameron held her breath again, lost in the blue. "I love you."


	36. Chapter 36

**A/N: A big thank you to everyone who is reading and reviewing, it really makes me day to see your comments. This is a little shorter than usual, I think, and it kind of jumps around a bit, but I wanted to touch on all the characters. I will be wrapping this up in another few chapters and sort of needed to get past the holiday season (since I'm behind real time now) and set up for the ending. I hope its not too choppy! Thanks!:) **

**A/N 2: Replaced this chapter to correct a few typos that were pointed out to me. Thank you, I hate that!**

Chapter 36

It was obvious to any and all who saw Cameron in the next weeks at the hospital that whatever had transpired after the separation surgery, it had been good. Cameron, sweet almost to the point of nauseating in some circumstances, virtually floated through the halls of PPTH.

To a casual observer, House seemed unchanged. He was still arrogant and obnoxious, belligerent, rude and unfeeling. Wilson was not a casual observer. Through years of experience reading House's moods, Wilson felt like House was waiting for something. Getting that something out of him was completely impossible.

It was just days before Christmas, and House was in his office alone. Wilson was walking down the hall and noticed him staring at the ceiling. Deciding to give it one more try, he walked in and sat down. After a minute or so unacknowledged, he looked up at the ceiling too.

"What are we looking at?"

"The ceiling."

"It's tall."

"Yup."

"Think we could throw some pencils up there and get them to stick?"

House dropped his gaze and looked at Wilson. The weeks of pestering him with questions about how he was feeling must finally have gotten to him, House thought. He's completely lost his mind. It wasn't a bad suggestion though. He opened one of his drawers and fished out four pencils. He tossed Wilson two.

While House and Wilson began attempting to get their pencils to stick into the ceiling, Cuddy walked past. She had been looking for Wilson, but when she found him in House's office she was momentarily taken aback by how young they both looked. The high school prank may have had something to do with that, but she was more inclined to think that it was just the effect they had on each other. Cuddy stopped to watch them, not even concerned that once again House was deliberately attempting to deface hospital property.

As Cuddy stood outside the glass, Cameron rounded the corner of the hallway. She'd been looking for Wilson also. She had noticed the last few days that House seemed even quieter than usual, and she wanted to know if he had mentioned anything to Wilson. She walked up beside Cuddy and turned, chuckling when she saw what the two of them were doing.

"They'll never get them to stick like that," Cameron commented. "You have to throw them like darts." Cuddy glanced sideways at Cameron. "I'm not quite the goody-two shoes everyone thinks I am."

"Let's not interrupt them," Cuddy said. "Jimmy could use a little relaxation."

"House too. Something is bugging him, I just don't know what," Cameron replied.

"His leg?" Cuddy asked. Cameron shrugged. "How are things with you two, by the way?"

"Better, except for whatever is bothering him. It's like he's, I don't know, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Does that make sense?" Cameron asked.

"It's House. Who knows?" Cuddy replied. The pair stood silently and watched their men for another minute. "Why don't we leave them be? If something is bothering House, Jimmy can probably get it out of him."

"It's never going to work," House said suddenly as Wilson's pencil dropped to the floor.

"Sure it will, it'll just take time and a little practice," Wilson replied, stepping the pencil and rolling it closer before bending over to pick it up.

"Maybe for a little while," House admitted, "but it will only fall down again."

"Maybe," Wilson agreed. "So then you throw it back up there. I never said this would be easy."

"It's work," House said.

"Yeah." Wilson flung his pencil up once more and it ricocheted off the ceiling and struck him on the arm before rolling across the floor.

House stared thoughtfully at the pencil twirling between his fingers. He leaned back as far as the chair would allow, and aimed the pencil at the ceiling. Throwing it like you would throw a dart, he watched as the pencil flew and buried itself in the acoustical tile above. He turned to Wilson and smirked, he'd gotten his pencil in first.

"Sometimes the fun stuff is work," Wilson commented, dropping his pencil on House's desk. House looked at him and nodded, Wilson nodded back, both men acknowledging they weren't just talking about pencils.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

House and Cameron decided their relationship was a little too new to delve into the holidays full force. Cameron had no real interest in visiting her family, and House understood completely. Although his mother called, as she did every year, and invited him to spend Christmas with them at his Aunt Sara's, House declined. He didn't tell his mother he was seeing someone, but hinted to her that he wouldn't be spending his holiday alone and that she shouldn't worry about him.

House was afraid Cameron would insist on decorating a tree, complete with tacky lights and ornaments. He wasn't sure he could stomach that. Fortunately for him, Cameron's only request was they buy a couple of real wreaths, just to get that wonderful pine scent into the apartment. House readily agreed, a few wreaths he could deal with.

It occurred to House on the 23rd that he should probably buy her something for Christmas. He wondered how he could possibly top those black pearl earrings, which she'd worn every day since he'd given them to her. Playing up the ache in his leg, he asked Cameron to spend the night at her place and use the Jacuzzi, just to get the opportunity to poke through her stuff and get some ideas.

XXXXXXXX

While House was ransacking Cameron's apartment for a gift inspiration, Wilson was spending a very nervous holiday dinner meeting Cuddy's parents. He had agreed without argument, but he wasn't really sure that Hanukah was the time to announce to your parents that you and your brand new boyfriend, veteran of three divorces, were having a child out of wedlock.

Cuddy was anxious to have her family meet Wilson. She was counting on the fact that she was finally giving them a grandchild to take some of the shock out of her being unmarried. She needn't have worried. After dinner, as they sat nervously sipping coffee, Cuddy blurted the news to her parents. Her mother smiled knowingly. Cuddy had known, of course, that her parents were very young when they got married. What she hadn't known before was that they'd married while expecting Cuddy's older brother.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Foreman took a deep breath and knocked on the door. It opened and his father ushered him into the house. It had been some time since Eric had been home for a holiday, and his father was glad to see him. His mother chatted pleasantly and recounted endless stories about Eric and Marcus as youngsters and how they'd always enjoyed their holidays.

When Foreman was finally ready to go back to Princeton, his mother told him she was really sorry he hadn't gotten to meet her sons. Eric's heart broke a little as he realized she hadn't been reliving those memories with him. She'd been telling him stories about her family because she didn't recognize he was her family. He smiled, and told her he'd love to come back and hear stories about her boys another time.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Chase picked Jasper up at her apartment in the late afternoon. He hadn't told her where they were going; only that he was sure she would like it. She agreed, and was actually quite excited to see what he had in mind. The only information he would give her was to dress warmly. When she got into the passenger side of Chase's car he handed her a blindfold. She looked at him uncertainly, and he told her just to trust him.

A short drive later, Chase parked the car and opened her door. Taking her by the hand, Chase led a still-blindfolded Jasper along a gravelly path. They stopped and she tried to take off the blindfold. He held her hand back, checking his watch, it wasn't quite time yet. After another minute or two he removed the blindfold and Jasper looked around. They were in the middle of a park, but not any park that Jasper recognized. Trees and shrubs lined the path, which wound and stretched for what looked like miles.

Suddenly, the trees and shrubs began to sparkle. Dazed by this glorious surprise, Jasper felt tears threaten as she looked all around. She realized now that he'd brought her to see the Christmas lights, just like her parents used to do when she was little. They'd talked about many things over the past few weeks, and she remembered discussing their favorite childhood traditions.

Touched that he had remembered and gone out of his way to do this for her, she took him by the hand. Their eyes locked and both felt a shiver that had nothing to do with the cold. Chase took her other hand in his and stepped closer. As they leaned in and shared their first kiss, snowflakes gently began falling around them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Cameron was feeling a little flat this Christmas. Normally she loved the holidays, but this year she felt like she was living on a rollercoaster. Every day with House brought a new mood. Some days they were so comfortable, Cameron could scarcely believe they hadn't always been together. Other days he was so withdrawn he didn't speak. Cameron thought perhaps this was just a normal House reaction to the holidays. It was, after all, a time when one normally spent time celebrating life and family, which wasn't exactly a Housian thing to do.

On Christmas morning, Cameron woke early and made French toast, her traditional holiday breakfast. House, who woke early only to the smell of food or the promise of sex, wandered into the kitchen just as Cameron was pouring syrup on a large plate of French toast for herself. House dropped a kiss on the top of her head to distract her as he stole the plate in front of her. Smirking at his childishness, Cameron made herself a second plate and they ate in a comfortable silence.

The dishes done, Cameron went to the closet and took out a gift. House seemed surprised as she sat beside him on the couch, how could she have hidden his gift in his own apartment and he didn't notice?

"Judging by the state of that closet, you'd never find it. It was the safest place," Cameron said, answering his question before he asked it. "I certainly couldn't hide it at my place, with all the snooping you do."

House stuck his tongue out at her and ripped the paper off his gift. He looked at closely and then looked up at Cameron. "Is this for real"  
Cameron nodded. She'd found an autographed photo of Steve McQueen from Bullitt, which she knew to be one of House's favorite movies, while searching for a gift online. It had cost her twice what she'd wanted to spend, and one completely sleepless night making sure she wasn't out bid for it, but the look on his face was worth it all.

House smiled, probably the most genuine smile Cameron had seen from him in weeks. It was a great gift, perfect for him. It wasn't so personal that it was embarrassing, but only someone who knew him well would know he'd love it. House reached under the couch and pulled out a gift for Cameron.

Smiling, Cameron removed the wrapping and opened the box. She gasped when she realized what it was. It was a first edition of Anne of Green Gables. Cameron looked at him in surprise. There were dozens upon dozens of books at her apartment, how could he possibly know this was her favorite?

"You have three copies of that book. Two of them are so worn out you can barely even pick them up. It's obviously your favorite. Just don't read that one to pieces, okay?"

"I love it," Cameron said, placing it carefully on the coffee table. She moved over on the couch and snuggled up with House. Life with him might be a rollercoaster, but the highs were definitely worth the lows.


	37. Chapter 37

Chapter 37 

Cameron had hoped to start the New Year off in her new position at the hospital, but as per his usual, House was being difficult. His moods were so unpredictable lately that she was hesitant to remind him he needed to be interviewing for her replacement. Maybe he thought she wasn't serious about terminating her fellowship early now that they were back together? Cameron really believed it was the best move for her and for them. They couldn't possibly spend all that time together without ending up at each other's throats.

Cuddy, exasperated that yet another assistant had quit and Cameron wasn't able to leave House's team to start in her new position, had no issue with telling him to get a move on. On Friday morning, she stood in the doorway to House's office. She'd spoken to Cameron earlier, before House arrived, and she knew he had been in a foul mood when he woke up. Telling House to start interviewing when he was already moody was a little like poking a bear with stick, so Cuddy thought maintaining a little physical distance was prudent. At least she wasn't sending him to the clinic.

"House," Cuddy said to get his attention. He was standing in front of his desk with his back to the door.

"What?" he demanded roughly. Cuddy cringed, Cameron hadn't been kidding when she'd said he was in a foul mood.

"I came to ask you how your search for Allison's replacement is going," Cuddy started. "But then I realized that you haven't started it yet. She terminated her fellowship weeks ago. You need to start interviewing."

"Yeah," House replied. He turned and limped toward her. Cuddy backed up a little, insisting to herself it was to give him room to get through the doorway and not because he was intimidating in this mood. She dared to give him her 'administrator from hell' look, however. "Got it! Need to replace Cameron. No problem, I'll just hire the first idiot who comes in the door, 'kay boss?"

"House," Cuddy called to him as he limped away, and something about the tone of her voice made him stop, although he did not turn around. "Look, I know you're concerned about your reputation for being a miserable ass, but this is really unnecessary. Nobody else thinks any differently about you just because of Allison." House still did not turn around, and Cuddy wasn't sure if she was really getting at what was bothering him. She stepped closer and stopped just behind him. "Are you okay? Is something else wrong?"

House closed his eyes at the concern in her voice. He knew Cameron would never send Cuddy here to question him about his feelings, but the fact that she was meant his mood was affecting Cameron enough for Cuddy to notice. That wasn't what he wanted; he just didn't know any other way to be.

"I'm late for therapy," House said quietly, and limped away. Cuddy watched his back receding down the hall, and hoped maybe Quig could get a handle on this before it was too late.

XXXXXXX

"You look like hell," House said to Quig as he settled into on the big brown leather chairs.

"My wife's a little under the weather. She didn't get much sleep last night and neither did I," Quig said as he sat in the chair opposite House.

House didn't comment. He actually wanted to talk today, but he didn't really know how to start. Something had been bothering him ever since he'd told Cameron that he loved her. This morning he'd been searching for one of his favorite t-shirts when he found something in his closet that he hadn't seen in a great many years. As soon as he saw it, he realized what had been bothering him and why. House reached into his jacket now and pulled the item from his pocket. He placed it on the small table between him and Quig, and then opened it. Inside was a diamond engagement ring.

"House, I'm flattered, but you're really not my type and I'm sure my wife wouldn't approve," Quig said. House barely smirked as he'd known some comment like that was bound to come up. He kept his eyes carefully trained on the ring.

"I bought that ring two weeks before the infarction," House said. Quig appeared surprised; he'd assumed the ring was for Dr. Cameron. "I was so afraid she'd find it, I carried it with me everywhere for twelve straight days. Then I finally hid it in my golf bag because I knew she'd never look there. I got up that morning and we made plans to go out for dinner, I was going to ask her. Then my leg happened and everything fell apart."

Quig nodded his understanding. He waited, somehow knowing that there was more to this story than just the ring.

"When I was really little, maybe six, my mom and I lived with her parents while my dad was overseas. Then one day she told me he was coming home. I was so excited; I hadn't seen him in months. They planned a huge party and my mom and I started looking at houses. When he came home, he told my mother he'd been promoted and accepted an assignment in Germany and we would have to move with him. We had two days. Two days to pack up our entire lives and leave everything and everyone behind. He didn't even seem to care."

"When I was graduating college my father actually managed to take leave and come see me. I was valedictorian. My whole family was supposed to be there, but when the ceremony was over I noticed that my grandmother was missing. I was so mad. I couldn't believe she didn't come to my graduation I almost didn't go to the party my mom planned. When we got there, my uncle told me that my grandmother had passed away, and they decided to wait until after the ceremony so they wouldn't ruin it for everyone."

I was obvious to Quig where this was going, but he knew House after all these months and he knew that it would better if he let him talk it out by himself.

"Every time I've ever had any real happiness, something has always happened to ruin it. It never fails. Maybe not the little things, but always when it was something real, something important." House looked up at Quig. "What's going to happen this time?"

"House, everyone has bad things happen in their lives. It's inevitable. Yours seem to have particularly bad timing, but that doesn't mean every time you're happy you'll have to endure some personal tragedy." Quig looked at him earnestly. This was something that he had suspected when he'd gotten House's brief history, but he hadn't known it had stretched all the way back to his childhood.

"My experience tells me otherwise," House countered.

"Maybe you're right. Let's say you are. Don't you think, and I'm being serious here, that it would better for you and easier to handle whatever came along if Dr. Cameron were there to help you through it?"

"Not if she's the tragedy," House said quietly.

"You're afraid something is going to take her from you," Quig stated. "That's a fear you have to live with when you love someone."

"I don't want to go through all that again. I can't," House said.

"But fear makes you make bad decisions. You can't live your life never doing anything because you're afraid of what might happen. Do you know what happens when you do that? Nothing."

"So what should I do?" House asked him.

"What is that you're most afraid of?" Quig said. "That you'll get hurt, that she'll get hurt?"

"I'm afraid I'll lose her," House admitted, although he couldn't quite look Quig in the eye when he said it.

"Then don't lose her. Do something about it."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

House walked around the corner one Thursday morning and began limping toward his office. As he made his way down the hall, he noticed a couple half-hidden behind a rolling supply cart. They were locked in an obviously passionate embrace. It occurred to him that he'd overheard less griping about him than normal from the nursing staff and he saw this as a perfect opportunity to remind them he was still a miserable bastard.

As he approached the snuggling couple, he realized that the back of the woman's head looked vaguely familiar. She was wearing a lab coat, so he knew she must work here. It could be any of a dozen people. He couldn't really recognize her, as her face was currently buried in her partner's mouth. When he reached the supply cart he gave it a good hard shove with his cane and watched it roll toward the couple, unnoticed. The resounding crash was more satisfying than he'd hoped, as the cart upended itself, spilling its contents across the hallway.

"Son of a bitch!" a male voice shouted, and House chuckled. He'd recognize that accent anywhere. "House, what the hell are you doing?"

"Oh, Chase. Sorry, didn't recognize you with that girl attached to your lips," House snarked at him. Then the girl turned around and he grinned even wider. "Dr. Jasper. Well, this is going to be fun." And with that, he turned and walked into his office, leaving Jasper a little nervous about what might be coming next.

"What's going to be fun?" Jasper asked Chase. "Should I be scared?"

"It's House. Always be scared," Chase answered. Reaching his hand out and smoothing her hair from her face, Chase leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss. "I've got to get the NICU. See you for dinner?" Jasper nodded and went to the conference room, rubbing her hip where the cart had smashed her.

Foreman was already in the conference room, waiting for anyone else to arrive. He was surprised that Cameron wasn't in yet, she was always the first to arrive. He hoped she wasn't trying to avoid House again. He had to admit, he had been a little relieved when she'd told them she was taking a position with Cuddy in the administrative department. It wasn't that he was happy to see her go exactly; he just hoped it would mean things would be a little smoother in the department. And probably in their relationship too; how much House could one person stand?

"Morning Foreman," Jasper said, noticing the coffee pot was empty. She started a pot herself, also curious why Cameron wasn't in yet. She rubbed her hip again absently as she waited for it to brew.

"You okay?" Foreman asked. Jasper looked confused. "You're rubbing your hip. Did you hurt yourself?"

"No. House saw me in the hall with Rob and pushed a supply cart into us," Jasper said. Foreman nodded. So she and Chase were an item finally. He was glad for them, but somehow this news upset him a bit. It meant he was currently the only one in their little group without a significant other. Even House had a girl. Foreman shook his head.

"Morning everyone," Cameron said as she entered the conference room.

"You're a little late this morning, aren't you?" Foreman asked.

"Late? Actually no, I've been down in the administrative offices since 6. Cuddy's last assistant quit when she heard that I was taking a new position there. Apparently, she was insulted that she didn't get asked. Anyway, stuff is backing up since I can't start yet so I came in early to try to catch up on some of it. Do we have a case today?"

"I don't know. House hasn't been in here yet," Foreman said.

"Of course not, I was busy spying on Jasper here," House commented as he entered from his office. "If I'm going to torture you all about your personal lives, I must have all the pertinent information. Finding Jasper sucking face with the wombat, well that's just a bonus. Too bad I didn't have my camera." House winked at Jasper, who merely shot him a glare before making herself a cup of coffee and sitting down. "It's best to have no personal life at all, right Foreman?"

House prepared himself a cup of coffee while his fellows stared at his back. What was with him today? It was like he was intentionally trying to showcase his talent for the obnoxious.

"House!" Cuddy's voice shouted from the hall as she entered. "You will kindly refrain from assaulting hospital personnel with our equipment."

"That wombat is such a cry baby," House pouted.

"The wombat," Cuddy drawled, "didn't whine. Three different nurses came and complained to me. It's barely even 9 o'clock."

"Three?" House asked, pleased. "I think that's a record. Go me."

"You're due in the clinic this afternoon," Cuddy said turning to leave. "Try to behave yourself the rest of today."

"Scout's honor," House said as he flashed Cuddy his middle finger. "Wait, that's not right."

"Grow up," Cuddy said.

"Make me."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

House limped down the hall toward the physical therapy room ten minutes early. Today was his last scheduled appointment and he was finally going to crack Dianna. For three months he'd been harassing her constantly and gotten no response. He'd snarked, he'd yelled, he'd pouted and one time he'd even threatened her with bodily harm, to no avail. Last night, while watching TV, he had been struck with a sudden inspiration. It would be tricky, but worth it.

"Good morning, Gregory. You're five minutes early, the apocalypse must be coming," Dianna quipped

House just smirked at her. He didn't intend to give away his winning hand before he got a chance to play it. Dianna indicated for him to get on the treadmill, which he did. When he was finished, 50 minutes later, she shut the machine off and watched him carefully as he toweled the sweat from his forehead.

"Gregory, I'm very impressed. Personally, I would recommend that you keep up with the therapy at least twice a week on your own. You wouldn't want all this hard work to be for nothing," Dianna told him.

"Moonlit strolls along the boardwalk, check," House said. He noticed the faintest of grins on her face at his comment, and he knew he had her exactly where he wanted her. He looked around quickly to make sure they were out of earshot of everyone else. Seeing that they were, he dropped the carefully schooled mask from his face and looked at her openly. "I thought all this physical therapy stuff was crap, but I was wrong. You've done an amazing job in helping me; my leg hasn't felt this good in years. I'll finally be able to get by drug free, and that's partly because of you."

The whole while he had been speaking, he noticed tears welling up in Dianna's eyes. Pleased, but not quite satisfied, he leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. That was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. Dianna began to cry openly and House, knowing he would be collecting quite a bit of cash in the next few hours, limped toward the locker room for a shower.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

After he'd finished his clinic hours that afternoon, Cuddy entered House's office. She couldn't believe after she'd specifically warned him this morning that he'd behaved as he had all day. Something was definitely going on with him, and she was determined to find out what before he got sued, again.

"What the hell is with you today?" Cuddy demanded by way of a greeting.

"I don't know what you mean," House replied, spinning his office chair to face the window so she wouldn't see the grin he couldn't wipe off his face.

"Three complaints from nurses this morning, then two complaints from the physical therapy department, a patient complaint while you were in the clinic and then ANOTHER two nursing complaints when you signed out. Are you taking part in some sort of dare?" Cuddy berated him.

"No, just reminding people who I really am."

"Well, you've certainly redeemed your reputation for being the world's biggest a$$hole if that's what you were going for. I actually had a nurse threaten to quit if she ever had to work with you again."

"Then all is right with the world," House replied.


	38. Chapter 38

Chapter 38 

House and Cameron sat uncomfortably on House's couch. Whatever had been bothering him the last few weeks was making things strained between them. Cameron was nervous, she was afraid he'd decided he didn't really love her. They'd been silently sitting in front of the TV for nearly an hour before she simply could not be silent any longer.

"Just say it," Cameron said.

"Say what?" House asked, turning and looking at her.

"Whatever. You don't really love me, you don't want to be with me, the sex has been great but I'm tired of you now. Just say it. I can't sit here like this any more," Cameron exploded.

"What makes you think I'm going to say something like that?" House asked her.

"I don't know; the fact that you've barely talked to me at all the past couple of weeks or the fact that you've been extra nasty to everyone else. You're obviously upset about something and you're taking it out on everyone but me. Logic says it's me you're upset about," Cameron said, feeling dangerously close to tears. He was supposed to say he really did love her.

"Something has been bothering me, I just didn't really want to talk about it," House said.

"Well I can't live like this," Cameron said. "It's driving me crazy. I feel like I'm walking on eggshells around you all the time and I'm just waiting for you to do something."

"Something like what?" House asked again, purposely trying to put her off.

"Dammit Greg, stop this!" Cameron shouted, now bursting into tears. "I love you more than I've ever loved anyone, and this is killing me. I don't expect you to tell me every little thought or feeling you have, but weeks of shutting me out is too much."

"I'm sorry," House said quietly. "I don't know how to talk to you about this without upsetting you."

"It's a little late to be worrying about that now," Cameron said ruefully.

"Yeah," House said, watching her cry. "I guess I've just been thinking about how long we can really make this work."

Cameron drew in a sharp breath. She was right. She knew this was coming, she just hadn't expected it to come so quietly. She'd always thought, in the recesses of her mind, that this might not work out. She'd just assumed that one day he would do or say something hurtful and that would be the end of it.

"So that's it, huh?" Cameron said softly through her tears.

"I didn't say that," House said slowly.

"You didn't have to," Cameron replied, standing from the couch and walking toward the door.

"Allison, wait. I thought you wanted to talk about this," House said.

"I do," she told him without turning around. "But what's the sense if you've already made up your mind?"

"But I haven't," House said staring at her back. "I haven't decided anything."

"Then what is this?" Cameron demanded, turning back to him with her eyes ablaze. "A test? You want to see how far you can push before I'll go? I'll tell you, it's not much farther."

"It's not a test," House answered her.

"Then what?" Cameron asked, more like demanded. She waited, but got no answer. She was tired of this already. She waited another minute and turned again to leave.

"I'm afraid, is that what you want me to say?" House yelled at her.

"I want you to tell me the truth!" Cameron yelled.

"You can't handle the truth!" House yelled backed. Cameron chuckled, she couldn't help herself. It was just so ridiculous. "Sorry, didn't mean to go all Jack Nicholson on you."

"It's okay," Cameron replied, somewhat more calmly than before. "I can handle it."

"I love you," House said. Cameron nodded. "I don't want to get hurt again," he continued. Cameron nodded again. "Love means a chance at being hurt."

"Yeah, it does," Cameron agreed. "But it also means a chance at being happy."

"I don't know how to do that anymore," House said. "Be happy."

"You can learn," Cameron said walking back to the couched and sitting back down with House.

"And what if I can't?" House asked her.

"Then I guess we'll just have to miserable together," Cameron said. It sounded like a joke, but she was serious. "I'd rather be miserable with you than happy with anybody else."

"Damaged," House said softly. "I don't want you to be miserable."

"Then don't make me leave."

"I don't want you to leave. But I'm not sure I want you to stay," House said honestly.

Cameron closed her eyes and tears began to flow again. She didn't know what to do. She wanted him so much, but he was clearly unhappy with her. Maybe he was right, and he really couldn't ever let himself be happy. Maybe he'd always be waiting for something bad to happen. Could she really live like that? And would she ever be happy if he wasn't?

"Then I'll go," Cameron said. "But I'm not going to wait forever for you to decide." She leaned forward and kissed him, roughly and fast and then she was gone.

House sat on his couch. Part of him wanted to run after her, but another smaller part almost felt relieved that she was gone. He had told her the truth. He didn't want her to leave; he didn't ever want her to leave. And that was what scared him. That he already wanted her so much. He hadn't even let her all the way in yet. What would happen to him if he did? Would he still be the Gregory House he knew? And if he wasn't, would that necessarily be a bad thing?

House sat on the couch that whole night. He never went to bed. It was too soon to go sleep in there when she wasn't with him. He sat on the couch and stared at the TV, not even aware of what was flickering on the screen. When the morning news came on, he limped to the phone and called Wilson. He told him it was about time they set up some interviews for Cameron's replacement. Then he went to the bathroom to get ready for work. He took a shower, and cried the whole time, because there he could fool himself into believing it was just water and not tears on his cheeks.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cuddy groaned as she felt Wilson lean across her to answer the phone. The shrill ringing had woken her from a deep sleep, and as she glanced at the alarm clock on the nightstand she wondered who in their right mind would be calling them at 2am?

"No, don't let her drive. Can you put her in a cab?" Wilson spoke into the phone, and Cuddy frowned. Put who in a cab? She heard Wilson give her address and frowned more deeply. Put who in a cab and send them here? "No, give her car keys to the cab driver and we'll pick the car up tomorrow. Thanks."

Wilson hung up the phone and sighed, then leaned back to his side of the bed and ran his face over his hands.

"You know, I don't appreciate you inviting strange women to my house in the middle of the night," Cuddy remarked, looking for an explanation.

"It's Allison. That was the bartender at The Funky Monkey. She wants to drive home. He found your number in her cell phone when she spilled her purse on the floor." Wilson said. "I told him to send her here. She probably shouldn't go home alone and the only reason I can think of for Allison Cameron to be drunk on a Tuesday night is…"

"House," Cuddy interrupted. "Right, bad idea to have them drive her there." Cuddy frowned again. "I thought things were going well. He told her he loved her."

"Yeah, and if you're House that means its time to back off," Wilson grumbled, getting out of bed and putting his robe on over his pajama bottoms and t-shirt. "Why don't you go back to sleep? You need the rest."

"I can wait up with you," Cuddy said lamely as she stifled a yawn.

"Yes, you can. But you're not going to. Go to sleep. If I can handle a drunk House I can certainly handle a drunk Cameron," Wilson said dryly. "I'm just going to grab some old sweats of yours for her and we'll probably be late tomorrow morning."

"Not too late," Cuddy said, blessedly unconcerned as she drifted back to sleep.

"I knew there would be benefits to sleeping with the boss," Wilson smiled to himself.

"Oh Jimmy, I think I'm dying," Cameron moaned as she leaned back from the toilet.

"I don't doubt that," Wilson replied. "Just relax, it'll be over soon."

"I'm sorry I woke you up in the middle of the night," Cameron said quietly, wiping her face with the washcloth Wilson handed her.

"Don't worry about it," Wilson said, waving a hand at her. "I haven't sat beside anyone puking their guts out in far too long." Cameron retched again and Wilson grimaced. "Sorry. Besides, usually it's House in the predicament and you're much more pleasant, even on your worst day."

Cameron leaned back from the toilet once more and rested her head against the cabinets. Just hearing House's name made her want to cry, but she had no tears left. She just closed her eyes and let the pain wash over her. Even with as much as she'd had to drink, it hadn't even come close to dulling it. She wondered randomly how much Vicodin it would have taken House to dull this sort of pain.

Wilson watched the pain play across her face and his heart broke a little for her. In between throwing up, she'd told him all of what House had said. And even though seeing her like this made Wilson want to throttle House just a little, he couldn't really be as angry as he wanted. He'd been honest with her and Wilson could respect that. Wilson remembered being scared about falling for Lisa so fast, and he was nowhere near as commitment phobic as House.

When Cameron was fairly sure she was done, Wilson helped her clean up a bit and get changed into some sweats. He made up the couch in the den for her and left her with a bucket, just in case. She fell asleep almost as soon as she lay down, and Wilson watched her for a minute to make sure she was really okay. Satisfied she was asleep and not unconscious he went back to bed and thought about the best way to handle House in the morning.

Luckily for Wilson, he didn't have much handling to do. House came in the next morning and went directly to Wilson's office. House told him everything he and Cameron had said, remarkably the same as Cameron had told it, and then asked Wilson to please not lecture him about it. He wanted some time to think it over and if he wanted to talk he'd let Wilson know. Wilson just nodded.

Things were not altogether unpleasant for the next few weeks. Cameron and even House were able to maintain their professional relationship at work without too much difficulty. They worked on a few cases and managed just fine. Outside of working on a case, House kept pretty much to his office and Cameron to the administrative offices.

House and Wilson had finally begun interviewing. Wilson, scarred from their last escapade in interviews had wisely scheduled only two interviews every other day. The search seemed to be fruitless until one Wednesday a young man stepped into House's office.

"Dr. Rupert Price," Wilson said as the young man sat down. He was tall and thin, with angular features. His hair was dark brown and wavy, with just a little flip to it. House had looked over his CV while he'd waited for Wilson to bring him in, and it was pretty impressive. House grinned when he took in the stiff-collared shirt and the precise Windsor knot in the tie. But when he opened his mouth to speak, House nearly fell out of his chair laughing.

"It's a tremendous pleasure to meet you, Dr. House," Price said, in an extremely proper British accent. House guffawed in the young man's face. Bewildered, he looked to Wilson for enlightenment, who merely shrugged. "Did I say something funny?"

"What's your specialty?" House managed to ask.

"I've a double specialty, actually, in hematology and oncology," Price answered, once again bewildered by House's mirth.

"Excellent, you're hired," House said. Price reached forward to shake House's hand. House just looked at him for a minute before the man turned again to Wilson. Once more, Wilson merely shrugged as he led him out of the office. Returning, he looked at House with a peculiar smirk.

"I knew you missed Chase," Wilson accused.

"Please. I screwed up when I hired Chase. This guy is the real deal. He probably went to Eton," House replied.

"He did, in fact," Wilson said, looking at his file.

"See. Besides, with Chase and Cameron gone, I need someone with pretty hair." House picked up his tennis ball and began tossing it up and catching it.

"Oh well, as long as you have a good reason for hiring him," Wilson smirked. "See you for lunch?"

House nodded. Mentioning Cameron had been a mistake. Now that he'd hired someone, it meant she was leaving. True, she was only going downstairs but somehow to House it felt like the end of everything. Pursing his lips, he stared out the window as he kept up a steady rhythm with the ball. Maybe it was time he did something about that.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cameron packed up her laptop and some patient files. Today was her last day in the diagnostics department. She looked around the conference room a little sadly, and a little hopefully. These few years had certainly not turned out the way she had ever expected. She was beginning to feel a little sentimental and she shook her head as if shaking the emotions out of her. She was only moving downstairs, not across the country.

She knew she was making the right decision. She had learned a great deal working for House, but she had suffered a great deal too. Moving on would be good for personally, as well as professionally. She wasn't sure she was really ready to let him go, but maybe taking a break from him for a while would help her make up her mind.

She heard voices behind her and turned to see Foreman and Jasper, in animated discussion over something, followed by Price, House's new fellow. She took a deep breath a plastered a bright smile on her face as she turned to face them.

"Dr. Cameron," Price said and Cameron's smile became a little more genuine. She found it absolutely hysterical that House hired a real British guy, and his accent tickled her. "Sorry we won't have the opportunity to work together on any cases."

"Me too," Cameron answered.

"Still, you're only moving downstairs. I'm sure we'll still you about," Price continued, and it was really all Cameron could do not to laugh at him. She was sure she'd be dealing with them plenty, being in administration would definitely mean dealing with House's team, and she'd really have to make an effort to get used to the accent.

"Cameron, you'll have to come up and visit sometimes when you have the chance. I need the estrogen boost," Jasper said.

"Not to worry, I know what it's like being the only girl around," Cameron reassured her.

"So, now that you're technically one of the bosses, do I have to call you Dr. Cameron now?" Foreman asked.

"No. A simple yes ma'am and a salute will do," Cameron replied, now beginning to waver again. She was not going to cry, she was not.

"Yes ma'am," Foreman barked promptly, complete with the salute. Cameron laughed. "It's past five and I actually have a date, so I have to run. I'll see you," Foreman said, and offered Cameron his hand. Cameron looked at it, and then made a small 'how about a hug' gesture. Foreman smiled and they hugged briefly. "See you guys tomorrow," Foreman said to Jasper and Price as he grabbed his coat and bag on his way out the door.

"I believe I'll be pushing off as well, then," Price said, shrugging into his overcoat and walking to the door. "Ladies."

Jasper stepped forward to hug Cameron too, just as House stepped into the conference room from his office. Jasper glanced in his direction quickly. She hugged Cameron, whispering a 'good luck' in her ear and walked out quickly.

"So," House said, tapping his cane on the floor.

"Yeah," Cameron replied. She had assumed she could get out without his commenting; they had pretty much avoided any real conversations the past couple of weeks. He seemed as though he had something else to say, and Cameron was tempted to wait. It was so hard to be alone with him and not beg him to choose her over nothingness.

Instead, she slipped her bag over her shoulder and picked up her coat from the back of her chair. She only hesitated a second or two before walking to the door.

"Cameron," House called. Cameron stopped in the doorway and turned around. He looked at her, but said nothing. Feeling tears threaten again, Cameron nodded at him and walked down the hall to the stairs, where she knew he couldn't follow.

The next morning Cameron arrived at work bright and earlier than usual, anxious but excited to start her new job. She didn't actually have her own office yet; Cuddy was still trying to work out those logistics, so for now she would be working in the small office between Cuddy's office and the clinic.

Cameron set up her laptop and began working on the pile of charts left from the previous day's clinic patients. She was smiled and realized that she was humming to herself. She hadn't felt so good about something in a long time. Thinking about how good she felt now only made her wonder why she'd been so tense before. Putting down the chart she was working on, Cameron recognized how intense working for House had been. And it wasn't just on a professional level, working for House had been intense personally and then emotionally as well. House was like a force of nature. Maybe too much of him wasn't a good thing.

"You really are an early riser, aren't you?" Cuddy said as she walked into the office. "Nobody ever beats me here."

"Just anxious to make a good first impression on my new boss," Cameron said with a smile. Cuddy reflected that she hadn't seen Cameron looking so relaxed and herself in awhile. Maybe a little break from House was a good thing for her. Cuddy only hoped it was just a break.

"Allison, I've been meaning to talk to you about something," Cuddy said. Cameron clenched just a little, assuming Cuddy wanted to talk about House or that night she had spent drunk on Cuddy's couch. "Jimmy and I wanted to ask you if we could name you as one of the baby's guardians, in case God forbid something should happen to us."

"Really?" Cameron asked, tears springing to her eyes. "Lisa I'm so flattered. I'd love to, of course," she gushed. Cuddy smiled back at her. "Good. Now, I have to warn you. There's already been some grumbling from a few of our doctors about having another woman in the administrative wing. Don't be surprised to get a little backlash. Personally, I say let's show them how it's done."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"She sounds really nice, Foreman," Jasper said, pouring herself a cup of coffee.

"She does, doesn't she?" Foreman said. "She's not the type of girl I usually go out with. Maybe that's why I'm always single."

"Speaking of single," Price interjected, "I was wondering if either of you were aware of Dr. Cameron's current situation?"

Foreman and Jasper exchanged a glance. "Uh, what do you mean?" Foreman asked warily.

"Does she have a beau?" Price asked.

"A what?" Jasper asked.

"A beau, a romantic involvement," Price explained.

"He wants to know if she's single," Wilson said from the doorway. He'd come to check up on House, but it appeared he wasn't in yet. Foreman and Jasper exchanged another glance, and then both looked at Wilson. How were they supposed to answer that?

"I really don't know," Jasper said, deciding to play dumb. "Dr. Cameron's a very private person. She would keep something like that very much to herself."

"Yeah. Not big on the sharing, Cameron," Foreman added, looking to Wilson for help. Wilson shook his head; he wasn't going anywhere near that one. He went back to his office to wait for House.

He didn't wait long. House limped in just after nine. He sat on Wilson's desk; it was more effective to mess up the files and paperwork when everything was in arm's reach. Wilson was ignoring him, as usual. It wasn't until House picked up a pink and blue greeting card with a little bow on the front that Wilson even really noticed what he was doing.

"Oh, you and Cuddy picking out birth announcements already?" House asked. "How sweet. But I don't think pink and blue are the traditional colors for hell spawn."

Wilson tried to grab the card from House, a gross miscalculation on his part. Had he simply said yes, House would likely have lost interest and dropped it. But it was obvious from the way Wilson was grabbing he didn't want House to see the card and that just made House need to read it. Opening it and eying the contents, House stood and began pacing the room.

"It came in the mail yesterday. I wasn't going to mention it to you because I wasn't sure how you'd be, you know, about Cameron and …"

"I'm fine. It's fine. She moved on. It happens," House said quietly. It had, in fact, been an adoption announcement. An adoption announcement from Mark and Stacy Warner. Mark and Stacy were happily announcing the arrival of their twins, Adam and Shana aged 8.

"It doesn't have to happen this time," Wilson answered him. "Stop being so cautious. Just be yourself. Go get her."


	39. Chapter 39

Chapter 39

House had already picked up the phone and dialed 8 of the 10 numbers he needed to call, and then chickened out and hung up the phone about six times. Maybe lucky number seven would be the one. House dialed the number and waited as the phone began ringing on the other end. After the fourth ring, he thought how perfect it would be if nobody answered after he'd spent an hour working up the nerve to call.

"House residence" a deep male voice answered. _Shit_, House thought.

"Hey Dad," he said, resigned to his fate. He had really hoped his mother would answer. He could have avoided a lecture that way.

"Greg," John replied. There was a long and uncomfortable pause as House mentally mapped out this conversation.

"Listen, I've got something to tell you guys and I don't want to do it twice. Is Mom home?" House hoped desperately that she was, otherwise the interrogation would begin.

"Yes. I'll go get her," John replied.

"Wait, Dad," House said quickly.

"Yes?"

"Ask her to pick up another extension. I want to talk to you both," House said. He hoped the fact that he asked to include his father in the conversation would make this a bit easier.

"Just a minute," John said. House could hear him calling to his mother from a distance. There was a brief pause and then a muted click as Blythe picked up the line.

"Greg, dear, how nice to hear from you," Blythe said and House smiled. He could always count on his mother to ease tension.

"Hey Mom. Listen, I called because I need to tell you guys something and I need a favor," House said, pausing to think about how to put this. "Do you still have Nana Jenkins engagement ring?"

"Of course I do," Blythe answered before the reason House would ask dawned on her. "Oh Greg, really?"

"Really what?" John asked. He'd been listening, but not truly giving House his full attention. House picked up on this and thought how typical it was.

"John, isn't it obvious? Greg is proposing," Blythe gushed. House grimaced, bracing himself for the …

"What? To whom? Why is the first we're hearing about it? It's not that Stacy woman is it?" John bellowed.

"No, Dad, it's not Stacy. And I told Mom at Christmas that I was seeing someone," House said, unable to stop himself from contradicting his father's impression that this was the first they'd heard of it. Perhaps it was the first he'd heard, as House was sure he hadn't been paying attention then either.

"So who is the lucky woman who finally recognized you for the catch that you are?" Blythe asked. House smiled; he couldn't help it. No matter what his father said, and that was plenty, his mother always said exactly the right thing.

"Her name is Allison. You met her when you were here in Princeton, on the way to Europe, remember?" House knew his mother would remember. Probably his father too; he'd always had an eye for a good looking woman.

"That girl doctor?" John asked, and House cringed at how chauvinistic that sounded. "For God's sake Greg, she must be 20 years younger than you!"

"Not quite," House muttered, not wanting to start this conversation.

"Of course we remember her, Greg, she's lovely. I assume you want me to send the ring to you?" Blythe asked, trying to steer the conversation away from anything unpleasant. This was not the time to be arguing.

"Yeah, I do. She deserves something special," House said. He could practically hear his mother beaming at him through the phone line.

"I'll ship it out today," Blythe said, and House smiled with relief. "When do plan to ask her?"

"Soon. I was sort of hoping we could get married on Valentine's Day," House admitted, and then prepared for some derisive comment from his father. Luckily, all he got was a half-hearted snort. His father had very little appreciation for romance.

"Valentine's Day? Greg, that's barely a month away. You'll never be able to plan a proper wedding in that amount of time," Blythe chastised him.

"I don't want a proper wedding, Mom. And Allison's been married before, I'm not sure she'd really want to go through all that again either."

"Wait, she's already been married?" John asked. "She can't even be 30 years old. She's probably only after you because she thinks you have money."

"John!" Blythe said and House bit his tongue.

"Her husband died of cancer," House said, hoping that would shut his father up.

"Oh, well," John said. _Wow, Dad, way to admit you were wrong,_ House thought to himself but did not say.

"Well, Greg whatever you two decide on is perfectly fine as long as it's what you both want. You'll let us know when the wedding is so we can attend?"

"How about if we wait and make sure she says yes first?" House said, eager to get this over with. The longer he talked to his father about this, the more chances there were a fight would break out.

"Yes, of course. Well, expect the ring in a few days, dear. And do call me," Blythe said.

"Thanks Mom," House said. He could hear his father hang up his extension without so much as a goodbye, never mind congratulations.

"I'll let you go, I'm sure you must be very busy," Blythe said. "I'm so happy for you sweetheart. I love you."

"I love you too Mom," House said. "Bye." He hung up the phone and mentally shook himself. _Well, that could have been worse,_ he thought.

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Friday morning the ring arrived in the mail. House carried it in his sport coat pocket, eager to show it off to Quig. He was, needless to say, extremely disappointed to find a message on this desk saying Quig was out for the day. Well now what was he supposed to do? This was something that required thought and planning and most importantly, someone to tell him he was doing the right thing.

By lunch time House was so fidgety Foreman actually asked him if he was on something. House just growled at him and Foreman backed off. By one o'clock, even House couldn't stand himself anymore. He had to talk to someone, and even though he had the biggest mouth in the hospital it looked like Wilson was it.

"Got an hour?" House asked Wilson as he walked into the office. He sat on the couch and began his ritual cane tapping, not really waiting for an answer.

"I've got 45 minutes," Wilson said. "Why?"

"Need to talk," House replied.

"You? Need to talk?" Wilson teased.

"It's one o'clock and it's Friday. Quig is out and apparently Pavlov wasn't the idiot I always thought he was. I need a deep and meaningful conversation," House said.

"Wow. I don't know if we can do deep and meaningful in 45 minutes," Wilson said, half-serious.

"Then let's speed this up," House said. "What are you doing on Valentine's Day?"

"I don't know. It's a month away. Probably something low-key," Wilson said. "Why?"

"Need a best man," House said.

"Huh?"

"I've only got 45 minutes. You're going to have to keep up," House snarked. "I need a best man."

"You're getting married," Wilson said stupidly.

"Nope, I just need a best man so I won't be the only one in a tux," House snapped. Wilson turned his head and looked out the window. House turned and followed his gaze. He saw nothing of interest. "Tick, tock Wilson."

"Sorry, just looking for the flying pigs," Wilson said. House groaned. "When did you ask her? You're not even speaking."

"I haven't asked her yet," House said. He stood and put the ring on Wilson's desk, then started pacing.

"Wow," Wilson said. "You're actually going to propose."

"I understand women like a little advanced notice," House said. Wilson smirked at him. He was nervous. This was priceless and Wilson found himself wishing desperately that he had a camera.

"Well, you'd better do it soon," Wilson said. House looked at him quizzically. "That Price guy's been nosing around about whether she's single or not."

House paused in his pacing as a thoughtful look passed over his face. Suddenly he grinned, an evil, maniacal sort of grin. This was going to be so much fun.

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Cameron was finally getting to some of the backlogged paperwork that the personnel department had sent to Cuddy. Thankfully none of it required a lot of action; there were mostly things that personnel decided the administration needed to know about. The majority of the information was pretty mundane, notifications of injuries to the staff, all of them minor, reported illnesses and so on. Cameron had filed the paperwork pertaining to Dr. Price's fellowship when she discovered some other papers in the file marked Dr. House. She smiled a little sadly as she recognized the forms naming her as his medical proxy. She wondered if he would be changing that back or not. As she removed the papers from the file she found another set of papers that she hadn't seen before.

She glanced them over quickly and thought that it must be some sort of mistake. Sitting up a little straighter in her chair, she read the first few pages more carefully. It wasn't a mistake, these were DNR papers. For House. House signed a DNR. Cameron just couldn't get her head around that. House signed a DNR. Did he really think so little of life, of his life, that he was willing to sign it all away? Cameron knew many doctors who had signed them, their decision made by the patients they watched waste away hooked up to machines. But, Cameron knew many other doctors, herself included, who saw the amazing medical advances that could made in relatively short amounts of time and decided that a fighting chance was better than no chance at all.

Cameron would have assumed House was one of the latter. He fought so hard for all his patients that she couldn't imagine him not wanting to fight that hard for himself. She began to go over all the things she knew about him, surprisingly little she realized, and wondered just how much he had really used the Vicodin for the pain in his leg and how much was for all the rest of his pain. There had been times, few and fleeting, when she'd wondered if he was depressed. She'd dismissed them, flippantly she now thought, because that was just House. Maybe it wasn't just House.

Her fingers worrying at the edges of the pages she looked through all of them now. He'd signed this DNR after the shooting. Cameron sighed. She was beginning to think he was right, and that he really didn't know how to be happy, until she reached the last few pages. He rescinded the DNR while they were together. Cameron closed her eyes, reflecting on how far he'd come in that time. He'd been through rehab, he was in therapy, he'd rescinded his DNR and he'd told her he loved her. Cameron glanced at her watch and seeing that it was nearly five o'clock, she tossed the file on her desk and headed for Wilson's office. She needed to talk.

"Jimmy, you got a few minutes?" Cameron asked from Wilson's doorway.

"Sure," Wilson said, waving her in. "I'm just working on some charts. What can I do for you?"

"I found the DNR," Cameron said, perching herself stiffly on the edge of Wilson's couch. Wilson's pen stopped mid-chicken scratch. Her tone of voice and posture left no doubt whose DNR she was talking about.

"He rescinded it," Wilson said, putting the pen down and looking at Cameron.

"Found that too," Cameron replied, tapping her hands on her knees. "He signed it the same time he made me his proxy."

Wilson nodded. He was torn. Part of him wanted to tell her what House was planning, not because he couldn't keep a secret, but because she looked so upset. The other part of him was terrified of the cane shaped lump he'd end up with if House ever found out. Wilson just nodded again, and decided that he could give her a little encouragement without actually telling her anything.

"I know why he didn't tell me," Cameron spoke again, unnerved by Wilson's silence. Normally he was only too happy to psycho-analyze House with her. "I know he's not ready to let me in, for real anyway. I just wish he didn't have to shut me all the way out."

"Allison, you've just got to give him a little time," Wilson said quietly. "He loves you."

"He loved Stacy too," Cameron said. "And he gave her up because he thought he couldn't be happy."

"He's been happy with you. He just didn't recognize it because it's been so long," Wilson replied. Something in Wilson's tone made Cameron pause. She stood up and began pacing. Wilson tried to hide his smirk as he watched Cameron trace the same path House had walked earlier that day. "He'll come around, maybe sooner than you think."

"Can I ask you something?" Cameron asked.

"Shoot."

"He's worth it, isn't he? I only know the stuff he lets me know. I mean, you're probably the only person who knows the real House. Is he worth it?" Cameron asked.

"There's only one House, thank God, and he's …" Wilson waved his hands to indicate he couldn't find the proper words. "He's an ass; he's a manipulative, cruel, selfish, rude, overbearing, arrogant son of a bitch. But when he lets you in, he's brilliant, funny, insightful, honest and fathoms deep with emotion he'd never admit to anyone else." Wilson smiled. "He's like no one you've ever known, or ever will. Yeah, he's worth it."

"Are you sure you're not in love with him?" Cameron smiled.

"Well there was that time at Mardi Gras…" Wilson let his voice trail off and grinned.


	40. Chapter 40

Chap 40 

As Valentine's Day crept closer and closer, House became more and more nervous and unsure of himself. He hated feeling this way but he just couldn't work up the nerve to ask her. He could barely work up the nerve to go see her. Completely contrary to his normal routine, he kept finding himself standing just outside the clinic so he could watch her through the glass.

On day five, Cuddy pounced. She knew he'd been sending Price to cover his clinic duty and she'd let it slide for a few days but if he was going to make such an easy target of himself she was going to take advantage.

"House!" Cuddy barked at him, catching him by surprise.

"Cuddy, my leg is crippled not my ears," House said, sticking a finger in his ear and wiggling it for dramatic effect.

"You must be missing the clinic, this is at least the third day I've seen you standing out here and staring wistfully. Get in here and see some patients," Cuddy demanded. She knew full well he was here watching Allison and she loved having that little bit of leverage.

"Already worked my hours today," House mumbled.

"No, Price worked your hours today," Cuddy replied, taking him by the arm and dragging him through the doors. "And yesterday, and the day before that." Cuddy took the first chart from the pile and shoved it into his chest. He stared at her for a minute and she stared back.

"You caught me," House said. "But my obligation to the clinic has been fulfilled for the week."

"But Price's hasn't. You can work his hours," Cuddy said. "Exam Two." She turned on her heel and walked back to her office, winking at Cameron on her way through. Cameron hid a smirk, not wanting House to know she had been the one to notice him hanging around.

House grumbled as he limped his way to the exam room. He stepped inside without bothering to look at the chart and paused when he entered. A middle aged man was sitting on the exam table and his left foot was encased in a block of concrete. Interesting.

"Foot trouble?" House asked.

"I think my ankle is broken," the patient said.

"We'll have to do an X-ray, but first we have to get that cement off," House said.

"But that's what the cement is for," the patient replied. House gave him a confused look. He'd assumed the man was just an idiot. If you stuck your foot in a bucket of cement, why not just pull it out and wash it off before it set? It seemed perhaps he'd underestimated his stupidity.

"You did that on purpose," House said. The man nodded. "Can you elaborate?"

"I fell off a ladder at my house. I landed on my leg; pretty sure I heard a crack. So I mixed up some cement and stuck my foot in it. It's just like a cast," he explained.

"Uh, huh." House commented. "Well, seems like you've got it all under control." House stood as if to leave.

"It burns," the patient said quickly.

"That would be the chemicals in the cement eating away at your skin," House told him patronizingly. "I'll call somebody down here who can remove that and set it properly." House picked up the phone in the exam room to call for an orthopedic consult.

"Couldn't you just give me something to take the edge off the pain?" the man asked. House dropped his head to his chest. He finished his request for the consult and turned back to the patient in amusement.

"It takes at least six weeks for a break to heal. In that time, the chemicals in the cement will have dissolved all the skin and most of the tissue on your foot and ankle, and will probably have started eroding the bone. If we don't remove it, you won't have any bones left to heal," House told the patient. He stood and walked to the door.

"Is that for real?" the patient asked him.

"No idea. Just wanted to gross you out. Sounded cool though, didn't it?" House asked and walked back to the reception desk. That guy was definitely going in his top ten list of clinic patient morons.

Three hours later, House having completed Dr. Price's clinic hours, he went back to his office. It was lunch time and he was starving but he wasn't in the mood to eat alone. He'd been avoiding Wilson ever since he'd told him about the ring; he just couldn't stand the constant nagging. At that moment, Wilson walked into House's office.

"I'm meeting Lisa downstairs for lunch, want to come with?" Wilson asked. House considered for a minute. Wilson might have a big mouth but he was no fool. House had been crystal clear in his insistence that his plan remain a complete secret. He wouldn't have told Cuddy anything and he wouldn't bring it up in front of her. Deciding he was safe, House grabbed his cane from the edge of the desk.

"When have you ever known me to turn down food?" House asked, brushing past Wilson on his way out the door. Wilson smirked; he hadn't said he was buying and even though most people would have found it annoying, Wilson loved that House assumed.

Downstairs, Cuddy was getting ready to meet Jimmy for lunch. As she walked out her door and into the outer office, she remembered how sad Cameron had looked eating lunch at her desk the last few days.

"Allison, I was just going to meet Jimmy for lunch, would you like to join us?" Cuddy asked.

"Thanks, but I don't want to intrude," Cameron declined.

"You're not. Come on, have lunch with us. If you don't come, he'll expect me to talk and I'm far too hungry to carry on a conversation." Cuddy cajoled her.

Cameron grinned. She'd noticed the increase in Cuddy's normally light appetite. "Okay, why not?"

Cameron and Cuddy made their way to cafeteria chatting pleasantly about Cuddy's pregnancy woes. They got in line in filled their trays, Cameron with a salad, fruit and water, Cuddy with a large sandwich, salad, fruit, jell-o and juice and paid for their meals. Cuddy scanned the cafeteria looking for Jimmy, but didn't see him. She and Cameron sat at a table when Cameron realized she had no utensils to eat her salad. She went to get a knife and fork when Wilson sat in the empty seat beside Cuddy.

"Hey," Wilson said, leaning over and giving Cuddy a kiss on the cheek. Cuddy only nodded, her mouth full of a quarter of her salad. Wilson chuckled and opened his own salad container.

"Cuddy, you're supposed to be eating for two, not ten," House commented snidely looking at the two meals that appeared to be spread out in front of Cuddy. She looked up quickly and then looked at Wilson.

"That's mine," Cameron said quietly, returning to the table with her cutlery. House just stared at her, tray in hand. Wilson and Cuddy looked at each other in dismay. Cameron looked confusedly at Cuddy and House glared at Wilson, certain he'd been set up.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"House, I swear I didn't know she invited Cameron to join us," Wilson insisted for easily the fifth time since they'd left the cafeteria. They were now in House's office, Wilson pacing and House twirling his cane absent-mindedly.

"And if you had, that's exactly what you would say," House countered. He was furious, and even though it was exactly the sort of passive-aggressive meddling that Wilson specialized in, he actually did believe that Wilson hadn't done it on purpose. He wasn't furious with Wilson; he was furious with himself for being such an ass to begin with.

"House," Wilson started again, but House held up a hand to silence him. He stopped his cane and hooked it on the edge of the desk. He reached into his pocket, withdrew the ring and held it out to Wilson.

"Take this." House ordered. Wilson looked unwilling. "It's making me nervous. As long as it's in my pocket, it's all I can think about. Take it, I'll ask you for it when I need it." Wilson took it reluctantly. House visibly relaxed. He was over-thinking. He needed a break. Remembering what Wilson had told him about Price a few days ago, he seized upon the perfect thing to distract himself.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Allison, I really didn't know he would be there today. He hasn't been all week," Cuddy told Cameron as they entered their offices from the cafeteria.

"I believe you. I should have known better anyway, the two of them practically come as a set," Cameron said somewhat bitterly. Last night was the first night in over a week that she'd slept the night through. No waking at 2am to spend three hours staring at the ceiling, no nightmares where House is dying and she can't save him or she's dying and he won't save her. Thirty minutes sitting elbow to elbow with him was certain to have ruined that for tonight. "I'm going to the clinic and work my hours, maybe I'll feel better. No chance of running into him there."

Cuddy frowned. She knew how much her doctors hated the clinic. It wasn't exactly her favorite part of the job either, really only second to trying to manage House. Cameron didn't seem to mind it as much as most, but to go there to cheer up was just sad.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Jasper and Foreman sat in the conference room, going over the chart of their last patient. He was being discharged this afternoon and would require physical therapy for some time to fully recover. Jasper and Foreman were reviewing notes because House had ordered Price to handle all the discharge paperwork and physical therapy referrals.

House seemed to be taking great pleasure in torturing Price the last two or three days. At first Foreman had been annoyed that House was having Price do so much of the work. Then he and Jasper had discussed it and decided House was either testing his limits, a very likely possibility, or just screwing with him because he was House, also quite likely. It didn't really matter. With Price doing the grunt work, Foreman and Jasper had time to collaborate on a theory and had actually diagnosed the patient before House.

"Hey, how are things with you and that nurse working out?" Jasper asked Foreman, pushing her chart away and rubbing her eyes. All that extra research had given her a headache.

"Really good," Foreman said, pushing his own chart away. There was no reason to finish this right now. It would only mean an hour of sitting in the conference room bored if he finished early. "We've been kind of taking it slow, you know? I think it's working out for the better."

"I think that's the way to go," Jasper nodded her head at him. "Sex comes with too much emotion, no matter how hard you try not to let it. The emotion should come first."

"Oh you women, always looking for feelings," House snarked as he entered the conference room.

Jasper rolled her eyes, standing to get a cup of coffee. She reached up for a mug and began to pour herself a cup, not noticing that her blouse had slipped down off her shoulder slightly and revealed the strap of her bra. House cleared his throat loudly, and then pointed when Jasper looked in response.

"That blouse is a little too big for you," House commented. "Must be a nice change."

Foreman winced. He hadn't heard House harp on Jasper's weight yet, but he supposed he should have known it was only a matter of time.

"I guess I've lost a few pounds," Jasper said slowly. "Must be all the sex."

Foreman winced again. Not that he wasn't thrilled that Jasper could give it right back to House, but her comment just automatically put all sorts of images in his mind that he would have been very happy to have never imagined.

"Nice. I knew there was a reason I hired you," House said, turning his back and limping into his office.

"He hired you for sex?" asked Chase, who had heard just the tail end of that conversation. "Something you want to tell me?" Jasper just laughed.

"Where's the new guy?" Chase asked, leaning in for a quick kiss on Jasper's cheek.

"Discharging our patient," Foreman said. "He's been gone over an hour, which means House should be paging him any minute now."

Chase just grinned, thank god for the NICU.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Price groaned as his pager went off again. He didn't even bother to look at it; he knew it was House. House had been paging Price every time he was out of the conference room for more than an hour, even when he'd just given him two hours worth of work to do.

Price handed the patient's file to the nurse at the station, the discharge now complete. Straightening his tie, he went back to the diagnostic offices to see what the tyrant wanted this time.

"Took you long enough," House barked at Price before he was even fully through the door.

"Sorry, Dr. House," Price responded. "What can I do for you?"

"Dropped my ball," House said.

"I beg your pardon?" Price asked.

"My ball," House pointed to the floor in front of the desk. "I dropped it. Could you pick it up for me?"

Price picked the ball up and placed it on the desk. He looked expectantly at House.

"Thanks," House said.

"What did you need me for, Dr. House?" Price asked again.

"That was it," House said, now not even looking at Price.

Price looked at House in astonishment. He turned and walked slowly out of the office, but House distinctly caught a muttered 'bugger off' as the door swung shut.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Dr. Cameron, could I have a word with you about something?" Price asked as he entered the lab.

"Of course, what can I do for you?" Cameron answered standing and gathering a few papers. "Do you mind following me back to my office? I've finished here."

"You worked for nearly three years with Dr. House. How did you cope with him?" Price asked as he and Cameron strolled down the hall.

"I don't know what you mean," Cameron said cautiously. Price looked around to see who would overhear these next comments.

"He's a miserable old sod! I know he's brilliant, but really, he's absolutely off his rocker. He paged me yesterday to pick up his tennis ball!" Price looked truly flustered, quite the feat for such a proper young man.

"He's just testing your limits," Cameron said.

"To what end?" Price asked.

"He needs to know your breaking point. That way he knows exactly how far to push to get the most work out of you and to help you learn the fastest without sending you up to the fifth floor," Cameron explained.

"Well, another few days of this and I'll tell stupid git to take a bloody leap," Price grumbled.

Cameron laughed. She couldn't help it. As long as he was carrying on a normal conversation she could hold it back, but Price in a snit was just too comical. Price, however, took her laugh to mean that she agreed with his assessment. Feeling emboldened, he placed a restraining hand on Cameron's arm before the entered the clinic.

"Dr. Cameron, I was wondering, would you like to have a spot of dinner with me sometime?"

Cameron froze. She didn't know what to say. She wasn't interested in Price, but the first words that had come to mind were 'I'm sorry, I'm already seeing someone'. The thing was, she really wasn't. She didn't want to lie to him, but she wasn't sure how much to say without inviting a lot of embarrassing questions.

"That's very flattering, Dr. Price, but I'm not really available," Cameron said. Not a lie, she wasn't available. She belonged to House; even if he wasn't sure he wanted her.

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that. He's a very lucky man, whoever he is," Price said respectfully. She was beautiful, certainly, but a gentleman did not encroach on someone else's love.

Cameron smiled at him brightly. He really was a gentleman, something House would probably only laugh at. She patted him on the arm and walked into her office. Price walked toward the elevators.

House consciously loosened the grip on his cane when he became aware of a sharp pain in his knuckles. He'd been on his way to the clinic to avoid working his hours when he'd heard that laugh. He recognized it instantly, and he had to know what could make her so amused. He had paused in an alcove between the elevators and the clinic, where he overheard the entire conversation. She hesitated. He was relieved when she had told Price she wasn't available, but then she smiled at him. That was his smile.

Reversing his course, he went back upstairs and limped past the diagnostics area straight into Wilson's office.

"I need that ring," House said. She wasn't going to smile like that at anyone but him.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cameron had just flopped herself down on the couch when she heard a knock at her door. She groaned; she was too tired to get up. Whoever it was would just have to go away. The knock came again, much louder this time.

Cameron heaved herself off the couch and opened the door, ready to give an earful to whoever was taking her away from her precious couch.

"House?"

He didn't say anything, just pushed his way inside. Cameron rolled her eyes, but only a little. She was too nervous to be really annoyed. This could only mean one of two things. He either wanted her back, or wanted her gone.

She turned and stared at him. He stared back. Neither moved or spoke for what was certainly an eternity, or maybe just two or three seconds. Finally, House unzipped his jacket and removed it, throwing it on the couch.

Cameron felt tears spring to her eyes. Emblazoned across his chest of his t-shirt were the words 'Property of Allison Cameron, M.D.'. House still didn't speak. He threw his cane on the couch as well and limped heavily to close the distance between them. Pulling her close, he kissed her as deeply as possible. When he pulled away, she was dizzy and breathless.

House released her, and Cameron became concerned when he seemed to be stumbling or losing his balance. When she truly understood what he was doing, she gasped.

From his position on the floor, all his weight now resting on his left knee, he took the ring box from his jeans pocket and opened it to her.

"Busy for the rest of your life?"

THE END

A/N: Okay, I know, it's a terrible place to end a story, and horribly cruel to leave it open ended like that for any faithful reader. But I've decided to make this a three-part series. The next section, titled Accpetance, will be coming soon. Thanks to all who have read & reviewed. I hope you'll stick with me for the next installment!


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